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Digitized by the Internet Archive 
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http://www.archive.org/details/historyofmexicoh01youn 



YOUNG'S 

HISTORY OF MEXICO. 



HISTORY OF MEXICO; 

HER ^,4 

CIVIL WARS, 

\ 

AND 

COLONIAL AND REVOLUTIONARY ANNALS; 

FROM 

THE PERIOD OF THE SPANISH CONQUEST, 

1520, TO THE PRESENT TIME, 184'?': 

INCLUDING AN ACCOUNT OF 

THE WAR WITH THE UNITED STATES, 

ITS CAUSES AND MILITARY ACHIEVEMENTS. 



BY PHII4IP YOUNG, M.D. 



"Bella intestina, c^des, raping, discordia." 

"It is ordained, in the eternal constitution of things, that people of intemperate minds can 

never be free. Their passions forge their fetters." — Burke. 



CINCINNATI: 
PUBLISHED BY J. A. & U. P. JAMES. 

PHILADELPHIA, LINDSAY & BLAKISTON. 

NEW YORK, J. S. REDFIELD. 

1847. 



■ WASV^;^ 



r - 



Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1847, by 
^ PHILIP YOUNG, M. D., 

In tlie Clerk's office of the District Court of Ohio. 



P- 



Stereolyped by James & Co., 
Cincinnati, Ohio. 



THIS Wt)RK A 



RESPECTFULLY INSCRIBED 



MAJOR GENERAL ZACHARY TAYLOR, 



THE AMERICAN ARMY. 



CONTENTS. 



i3®€»K 1. 



CHAPTER I. 

The Origin of the Mexicans — Montezuma's Account of the History of his 
People — The Exodus of the Toltecs, Chichemecas, Acolhuans, and Aztecs 
— Their Conquest of the Valley of Anahuac — The Building of Tenochtit- 
lan — Montezuma — His Character — His Power and Magnificence — The 
great Temple of Mexico — The Religion of the Aztecs 23 

CHAPTER II. 

Hernando Cortes — He lands at Vera Cruz — His Force — The Gallant 
Defence of the TIascalans — The Massacre at Cholula — The Spaniards 
enter Tenochtitlan — The Imprisonment of Montezuma — The Expedition 
against Narvaez — The Revolt of the Mexicans and the Death of Monte- 
zuma — ^^The Retreat of the Invaders — La Noche Triste — The Battle of 
Otumba — The Fall of Mexico — The Cruelty of the Conquerors — Con- 
version of the Indians — Missionaries — Government of Mexico — Las 
Casas — Leyas Las Indias — Council of the Indies — Philip II. — His 
Policy — Decline of the Power of Spain — English Buccaneers — Igno- 
rance of the Mexicans — Their Depravity and Superstition 33 

CHAP TER III. 

Colonial History Continued — The Tyranny of Spain — The Mexican 
Hierarchy — Its Splendor — The Inferior Clergy — Their Power — The 
War of 1739 — The Policy of Philip V. — The Revolt of 1778 — Propo- 
sition of the Count D'Aranda — The Provinces of Mexico — Its Popula- 
tion. 53 

(3) 



4 CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER I. 

The Opening of the 19th Century — The Condition of France — Spain, 
Mexico, and Europe — The Administration of D'Urquijo — Charles IV. — 
Queen Louisa — The Prince of Peace — The Recession of Louisiana to 
France by the Treaty of St. Illdephonso — Cession of the same Territory 

to the United States 65 

m 
CHAPTER II. 

The Abdication of Charles IV Ferdinand the VII. proclaimed King by the 

Mexicans — The Violent Deposition of the Viceroy of Mexico, Iturrigary 

— Vanegas — His Administration — Conspiracy against the Government 

— Its Premature Disclosure — Padre Hildago — The Eevolt — Capture 
of Celaya — The Rebels enter Guanajuato — Storming of the Alhondiga 

— The Sacking of the City, and Massacre of Col. Riana and his Troops . 71 

CHAPTER III. 

The Evacuation of Valladolid — The Rebel Host advances upon the Capital 

— The Condition of the City of Mexico — The Insurgents Excommuni- 
cated — The RoyaUsts Defeated at Las Cruces — Hildago Encamps in 
sight of the Capital — His sudden Retreat — The Battle of Aculco — 
Massacre at Guanajuato — The Recapture of Valladolid — Battle of the ■ 
Bridge of Calderon — Capture and Death of Hildago 79 



J3®®1 3. 

CHAPTER I. 

Defeat of Rayon at Zitaquaro — Organization of the Patriot Junta — The 
Rebels adopt the Guerilla Mode of Warfare — The Character of these 
Troops — Padre Morelos — The Action of Quatla Amilpas — Capture of 
Oaxaca — The Siege of the Castle at Acapulco — The Guerilla Chiefs: 
Victoria, Teran, Cos, and Ossourno 87 

CHAPTER II. 

Invasion of Texas by the Americans — Capture and Siege of Goliad — Bat- 
tle of San Antonio — Defeat of Salcedo — Massacre of Spanish Officers 
— Defeat of Elisondo — Advance of Arredondo — General Toledo as- 
sumes the Command — Treacheiy of the Mexicans, and Defeat of the 
Americans and Indians — Retreat from Bexar — Capture and Fate of the 
Fugitives 93 



CONTENTS. 5 

CHAPTER III. 

Return of Calleja as Viceroy — Progress of the Civil War — The Patriot 
Junta assembled at Azpatzmgan — Manifesto of the Rebels — Folly and 
Treachery of the Junta — The Intrigues of Calleja — The Siege of Valla- 
dolid — The Retreat of Morelos — Battle of Puruaran — Augustin Iturbide 

— Rout of the Insurgents — Death of Matamoras- — March to Tehuacan — 
Execution of Morelos 99 

CHAPTER IV, 

Dispersion of the Rebel Junta by General Teran — Exploits of the Gueril- 
las : Victoria, Ossourno, and Guerrero — Expedition against Guasacualco 

— Affair at Playa Vicente — Battle between Topete and Teran — Defeat 
of the Spaniards — Return to Tehuacan — Apodaca appointed Viceroy — 
Capitulation of Teran — The Character of that Chief 109 



i3®©K 5. 



CHAPTER I. 

Progress of the Revolution — Success of the Royalists — General Victoria's 
Troops dispersed — He withdraws from the Contest — Surrender of Co- 
pero — Character of Ossourno and his Lieutenant, Gomez Vincenta — The 
famous Guerilla, Jose Antonio Torres — His Character and Cruelty toward 
his own Party — Organization of a Revolutionary Committee — Condition 
of the Patriot Party in Mexico at this period 119 

CHAPTER II. 

Xavier Mina — His Birth, Parentage, and early Exploits — Sails for Mexi- 
co — Lands on Galveston Island — Commodore Aury — Colonel Perry — 
The Expedition sails for the Rio Santander — Soto la Marina — Defeat of 
La Garza — Mina's Plans — Desertion of Colonel Perry and Fifty Men — 
Suffermgs of the Fugitives — Desperate Battle between the Americans 
and Mexicans — Heroic Death of Colonel Perry . . 127 

CHAPTER III. 

Mina Marches toward the South — He is opposed by the Enemy, under 
Colonel Arminan — El Vallede Mais — Battle of Peotillas — Defeat of the 
Spanish Forces — The Crafty Priest of Hideonda — The Women of 
Espiritu Santo — Capture of Real del Pinos— Execution of a Soldier for 
Sacrilege — Mina Enters Guanajuato — Termination of the March to 
Sombrero — Mina's Evil Genius 135 

CHAP TER IV. 

General Arredondo besieges the Fort at Sota la Marina — Desertion of La 
Sala — Gallant Defence of the Garrison — Noble Action of a Mexican Wo- 



6 CONTENTS. 

man — A Drove of Horses used as a Defence — Discomfiture of the Span- 
iards — Capitulation of the Fort — Cruel Treatment of the Prisoners — 
They plan an Escape — March to Vera Cruz — The Fate of the mifortu- 
nate Prisoners 143 

CHAPTER V. 

Colonel Castanon — Battle of San Juan de los Llanos — Defeat and 
Death of Castanon — A Mexican Croesus — Plunder of El Jural — Inter- 
view of Mina and the Patriot Chiefs — Conduct of Torres — Popularity 
of Mina — Policy of the Viceroy — Abortive Attempt upon Villa de Leon 
— Siege of Sombrero — SufiFerings of the Patriots — Death of Colonel 
Young — Evacuation of the Fort and Massacre of the Prisoners 149 

CHAPTER VI. 

Mina Recruits another Corps — Capture of Bichoco and San Luis — Skir- 
mishing with Orrantia — Linan besieges Los Remedios — Bombardment 
of the Fort — Night Attack upon Guanajuato — Cowardice of the Soldiery 
— Conflagration of the Valenciana Mine — Perfidy of a Mexican Priest — 
Mina is Surprised and Captured by Orrantia — Barbarity of that Officer — 
Closing Scene of Mina's Life — Bombardment of Remedios Renewed — 
Conflicts betweed the Hostile Forces — Abandonment of the Fort — Horri- 
ble Cruelty of the Victors — Surrender of Jauxilla to the Enemy — Noble 
Conduct of a Spanish Leader 161 



i3®®K 5. 



CHAPTER I. 

DisPEBsiON of the Guerillas — Exploits of El Giro — Appointment of Arago 
to the Supreme Command — Death of Lieutenant Wolfe — Guerrero en- 
trenches himself on the Pacific — Pacification of Mexico — End of the 
War — Treaty of 1819 — Permission granted for Anglo-Americans to 
settle in Mexican Territory 173 

CHAPTER II. 

Revolution in Spain — Its effect upon Mexico — Preparations of the Viceroy 

— Opposition of the Clergy to the Decree of the Cortes ordering the Se- 
questration of the Church Property — Conspiracy of Iturbide — Plan of 
Iguala — Spread of the Revolt — Apodaca is Deposed by liis own Party 

— Marcli of Victoria upon the Capital — Iturbide enters Puebla — Arri- 
val of O'Donaju — Treaty of Cordova — Independence of Mexico. . . . 179 

CHAP TER III. 

Difficulties of the New Government — Conspiracy of Bravo and Victoria — 
The Deputies swear to Support the Plan — Factions in Congress — In- 



CONTENTS. 7 

triguee of Iturbide — Financial difficulties of the Nation — Reduction of 
the Standing Army, and the increase of the Militia — Iturbide's Ambition 
— Nocturnal Tumult — Conduct of the Mexican Mob — Meeting of the 
Deputies — Election of the Emperor — The fifteen honest Representatives 1 90 

CHAPTER IV. 

Coronation of the Emperor — Refusal of the Archbishop to officiate at the 
Ceremony — Persona! appearance of Iturbide — Tyrannical administration 
of the Emperor — Imprisonment of fourteen Deputies for Treason — Dis- 
solution of Congress by force — Organization of a National Junta — Un- 
lawful seizure of money at Perole — Imperial Order of Guadalupe — Colo- 
nization laws 198 

CHAPTER V. 

Iturbide's progress to Jalapa — His fatal interview with Santa Anna — Revolt 
of the Garrison of Vera Cruz — Pronunciamento against the Emperor — 
Fraternization of the hostile Armies — Convention of Casa Mata — Vic- 
toria assumes the Command — Requisition upon the Clergy — Advance of 
the Malcontents — Abdication of the Emperor — Formation of a Trium- 
virate 204 

CHAPTER VI. 

Constitution of 1824 — Opposition of the Clergy and Military — Intrigues of 
the friends of the late Emperor — Revolt of Echavarri — Insurrection at 
the Capital — Banishment of Staboli and his accomplices — Decree against 
Iturbide — Sudden return of that Personage — His arrest — Death of Itur- 
bide — His reputation in Mexico 209 

CHAPTER VII. 

Abolition of Negro slavery in Mexico — Origin of African slavery in South- 
ern America — Financial difficulties — Negotiation of a Loan — Recogni- 
tion of Mexican Independence by the United States and Britain — Na- 
tional Colonization Law — Election and Inauguration of Victoria and 
Bravo — Prosperous condition of the Colonies east of the Rio Grande . . 216 

CHAPTER VIII. 

Struggle between the rival Masonic Lodges — Efforts of the Clergy to 
suppress Masonry — Political Principles of the two Factions — Pronun- 
ciamento of Colonel Montanyo — General Bravo Revolts — Guerrero quells 
the Rebellion — Services of Commodore Porter — Santa Anna takes up 
Arms —He is Outlawed — He enters the Capital — Struggles of the Fac- 
tions — The City is Pillaged 221 



8 CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER IX. 

'Conspiracy of the Escoces — Landing of a Spanish army under General 
Barradas — Santa Anna marches against him — Capitulation of the Span- 
iards — Revolt of Bustamente — Union of Santa Anna with the Rebels — 
Flight of Guerrero — Tyranny of Bustamente — Difficulties in the North- 
ern Provinces — War between the Rival Parties — Capture and Death of 
Guerrero 229 

CHAPTER X. 

Fall of Bustamente — Elevation of Gomez Pedraza to the Presidency — 
Struggles of the Factions — Death of General Teran — Santa Anna elected 
President — Zavala's Bill to cut down the revenues of the Church — Sud- 
den conversion of Santa Anna — Expenses of the Army — Cruel Treat- 
ment of the Government to the Texan Envoy 235 



B©©1 6. 



CHAPTER I. 

Congress of 1834 — Collusion of the Clergy and the Military to subvert the 
Constitution — Dissensions in the Government — Dissolution of Congress 
by Santa Anna — Disanning of the People — Rising of the Provinces — 
The People of Zacatecas take up Arms — Defeat of the Zacatecans by 
Santa Anna — Decree of 1835 — Revolt of the Texans — Capture of 
Bexar and Goliad 241 

CHAPTER II. 

Mexia's Expedition against Tampico — Death of twenty-eight of his Men — 
Santa Anna invades Texas — Siege of the Alamo — Bravery of the Gani- 
son — Fall of the Alamo — Organization of a separate Government in 
Texas — That State Declares her Independence — Retreat of the Texans 

— Advance of the Mexicans — Battle of San Jacinto — Capture of Santa 
Anna • . . . 252 

CHAPTER III. 

Santa Anna agrees to recognize the Independence of Texas — Retreat of Fili- 
solo — Santa Anna is sent to the United States — His return to Mexico 

— Second administration of Bustamente — The French Blockade Vera 
Cruz — Description of San Juan de Ulloa — Bombardment of the Castle 

— Santa Aima's Gallantry — Revolution of 1841 — General Canales . . 262 



CONTENTS. 9 

CHAPTER IV. 

Yucatan : its Climate, Soil, and Topography — Its Population — The Revolt 

of Santiago Inian — Attack upon Espeta — Battle of San Fernando 

Proclamation of the Rebel Chief against the Clergy — Colonel Roquena's 

attack upon Tizimin — General Rivas — Strength of the Rebel Party 

Advance upon the city of Valladolid de Yucatan — Iman proclaims the 
Constitution of 1824 — Siege of Campeachy — Tyranny of Bustamente 
— Revolution of 1841 — Fall of Bustamente 275 

CHAPTER V. 

Invasion of Newr Mexico — Capture and fate of the Invaders — Cruelty of 
Salazar — Dissolution of Congi-ess by Santa Anna — Convocation of a 
Junta — Condition of Yucatan — Commodore Moore — Expedition 
against Yucatan under General Morales — The Vomito — Its Effects — 
Return of the Mexican Army — Foray into Texas — Capture of Bexar — 
General Canales — General WoU's Expedition — The Texans cross the Rio 
Grande — Battle of Mier — Capture of the Texans — The new Constitu- 
tion — Order for the expulsion of Americans from the north-western depart- 
ments — Conduct of the American Envoy — Remonstrances of Mexico 
against the Annexation of Texas — Armistice between Mexico and Texas 

— Sam Houston — The British Charge cV Affairs — Negotiations for Peace 

— Santa Anna and los Texanos — General Almonte's Protest — Opening 

of the Chamber of Deputies — Installation of Santa Anna 285 



B€>©1 7. 



CHAPTER I. 

FiNAifciAi. difficulties of Mexico — The amount of the National Debt — Reve- 
nues of the Republic — Expenses of the Government — The cost of the 
Army — Mexican Navy — Santa Anna's personal Popularity — His Leg 

— Commencement of Difficulties with the United States — History of the 
Annexation Movement ~ Mediation of European Powers — Mexican ag- 
gressions upon the Commerce and Citizens of the United States — Treaty 
of 1831 — Its Violation — Forbearance of the American Government — 
Convention for the adjustment of Claims, 1839 — Indemnity Allowed — Re- 
newal of the Annexation Question — Mr. Calhoun — Sam Houston . . 301 

CHAPTER II. 

Satisfaction of the people of Mexico at the rejection of the Treaty of Annex- 
ation — Castle of Perote — Description of that Fortress — Texan Prisoners 

— Houston's Proclamation — Yucatan Indemnity — Condition of Politi- 
cal Parties — Santmanet's Expedition to Tobasco — Its Result — 
Barbarity of Arnpudia — Senor Rejon and the American Envoy — 



10 CONTENTS. 

Santa Anna's demand upon Congress — The Four Million Grant — Re- 
volt of Paredes — Progress of the Revolution — Surrender, Trial, and 
Banishment of Santa Anna — Intrigues of Foreign Ministers — General 
Taylor encamps at Corpus Christi 317 

CHAPTER III. 

Administration of Herrera — Intrigues of the Monarchists — Condition of the 
Public Funds — Arrival of Mr. Slidell — Refusal of Herrera to receive the 
Envoy — Revolt of General Paredes — Resignation of the President — 
Paredes assumes the Supreme Power — Return of the American Envoy — 
Yucatan — Army of Occupation — General Taylor marches to the Rio 
Bravo — Commencement of Hostilities — Capture of Captain Thornton's 
Command — Siege of Fort Brown — Battles of Palo Alto and Resaca de 
la Palma — Retreat of the Mexicans — Occupation of Matamoras by the 
American Forces 334 

CHAPTER IV. 

Law of the Convocation — Tyranny of Paredes — Condition of the public 
Treasury — The Government suspends Payment — The Clergy is called 
upon to assist the Stale — Reply of the Archbishop — Meeting of the 
Chapter — The opulence, number and influence of the Mexican Clergy — 
Captain Fremont enters Upper California — His Reception — He is or- 
dered to leave the Province — His Reply and Departure — Revolt of the 
Indians under Juan Alvarez — Insurrection of the garrisons of Mazatlan, 
Tepic, and San Bias — Liberty of the Press destroyed — Removal of Arista 
from the command of the Army — Blockade of Vera Cruz and the ports of 
the Pacific — Pronunciamento at Guadalaxara — Meeting of Congress — 
Progress of the Revolt 359 

CHAPTER V. 

The Congress of the United States declares the existence of the War with 
Mexico — Declaration of Paredes, 1st of June — Pronunciamento at Vera 
Cruz — Revolt of the Capital — Fall of Paredes — Return of Santa Anna 

— He is allowed to pass the American Fleet — The Reasons for the same 

— Paredes imprisoned at Perote — General Kearney's Expedition — He 
takes possession of Santa Fe and New Mexico — Commodore Sloat raises 
the Flag of the Union in California — General Taylor advances to 
Camargo — March toward Monterey — Number of American Troops, ar- 
tillery, cavalry, and bayonets, employed in the siege and capture of Mon- 
terey — Description of the City — Skirmish with the Enemy's Cavalry at 
Ramas — The Army encamps at the Walnut Sprmgs — Advance of Gen- 
eral Worth — Garland's attack on the first Battery — Captain Backus and 
his men — Capture of die Redoubt by Quitman's brigade — Advance of 
the Ohio troops — Garland's second charge — The Bridge of Purissima — 
Charge of the Mexican lancers — Braggs light battery — Storming of the 



CONTENTS. 11 

Heights — Bishop's Palace — The Tcxans — The Retreat of the Enemy to 
the Plaza — Ampudia proposes to surrender the Town — Correspondence 
between the Generals — Terms of Capitulation — And the cause of their 
acceptance 379 

CHAPTER VI. 

Re-sstablishment of the Federal Constitution — Overtures of the United States 
for Peace — Santa Anna invited to assume the Supreme Power — His Re- 
ply — His reception at the Capital — His efforts to raise an Army — 
Organization of the Mexican Army — Regulars and Militia — Ranchero 
Cavalry — Santa Anna arrives at San Luis — Ampudia evacuates Saltillo — 
General Worth advances to Saltillo — March of Wool's Division — He is 
compelled to alter his course at Santa Rosa — Monclova — Parras — The 
Mexicans abandon Tampico — Its occupation by the Americans — Com- 
modore Perry attacks Tobasco — March to Victoria — Retreat of the Mexi- 
cans — Occupation of the City — Distress of the Mexican Government — 
Circular to the Several States 40 7 

CHAPTER VII. 

Meeting of the Federal Congress — Election of Santa Anna and Gomez 
Farias — Rejection of the Pacific Overtures from the United States — Law 
confiscating the Property of the Church — Protest of the Clergy — Admin- 
istration of Farias — Policy of the Clergy — Massacre of Governor Bent in 
New Mexico — Battles of Canada and EI Embudo — Occupation of El 
Paso — Battle of Sacramento — California — Santa Anna's advance upon 
Saltillo — Capture of Major Gaines — The Pass of Angostura — Battle of 
Buena Vista — Retreat of the Mexicans — General Scott — Preparations 
for the reduction of Vera Cruz — Landing of the Americans — Investment 
bombardment, and capture of the City and Castle 426 

APPENDIX . .471 



INTRODUCTION. 



That portion of the continent of North America 
formerly known as the Viceroyalty of New Spain, 
extended from the 16th to the 42d parallel of north 
latitude.* It was bounded on the east by Louisiana 
and the Gulf of Mexico ; on the west, by the Pacific 
Ocean; on the north, by the territory of the United 
States, and on the south, by Guatimala and the 
Pacific. This vast country embraced within its 
limits every variety of soil, chmate, and productions ; 
but was sadly deficient in population, the principal 
element upon which nations build their hopes of 
greatness. 

The Peruvian Andes, concentrating themselves at 
the Isthmus of Darien, gradually expand as they ad- 
vance towards the north, until their ridges spread out 
into great plains, which are called table lands. These 
plateaus are elevated from 6000 to 8500 feet above 

* Before the treaty of 1819, the Spaniards claimed the whole territory 
to the north of this line. 

(13) 



14 INTRODUCTION. 

the level of the adjacent seas; and from their surface 
spring volcanic peaks which piercing the clouds, are 
covered with perpetual snow; the height of their 
summits varying from 13,400 to 17,500 feet. The 
Mexican Cordillera, passing in a northerly direction, 
takes the name of Sierra Madre, and beyond Guana- 
juato divides into three great chains which traverse 
the country in different directions. The central 
branch runs through the departments of Zacatecas, 
Durango, Chihuahua, and New Mexico, where it joins 
the southern extremity of the Rocky Mountains. In 
this chain rise the head waters of the Rio Grande 
which flows into the Mexican gulf, and those of the 
Rio Gila, which empty into the Sea of Cortes. The 
western arm of the Sierra Madre, advancing toward 
the north-west, passes through Guadalaxara, Sonora, 
and Sinaloa, and forms the eastern barrier of Upper 
California. The eastern chain, traversing San Luis 
Potosi and New Leon, disappears in the hills of Coa- 
huila. These mountains are composed of porphyritic 
rock, interspersed with granite, basalt, am3^gdaloid, 
trap, hornblende, gypsum, and limestone. They 
abound in rich veins of gold, silver, zinc, copper, and 
mercury. Iron ore also exists, but the scarcity of 
fuel prevents its manufacture. 

The table lands are for a great part of the year 
above the clouds, and during the dry season they 
present a parched, dusty, arid appearance, nearly 
destitute of trees; yet the soil is extremely fertile, 
and where water can be procured to irrigate the land, 



INTRODUCTION. 15 

it yields a most luxuriant harvest. In tropical Mexico 
the rivers are small and confined within high, narrow 
banks, which are overflowed during the rainy season. 
This is also the case with the rivers of Texas.* The 
wet season begins in June or July, and continues until 
September or October. These genial showers are 
accompanied by the evolution of vast quantities of 
electrical fluid, attended with terrific peals of thunder. 
They commence upon the eastern declivity of the 
Cordillera, and following the direction of the trade 
winds pass from east to west; the rain falling ten or 
fifteen days earlier at Vera Cruz, than at the city of 
Mexico.f 

The departments of Yucatan, Chiapas, a portion 
of Tobasco, Vera Cruz, Mechoacan, Jalisco, Oaxaca, 
Puebla, and Mexico, are situated within the regions 
called Tierras Calientes (hot lands), and produce in 
abundance 'every variety of tropical vegetation. Su- 
gar, cotton, rice, cocoa, cochineal, indigo, vanilla, 
oranges, lemons, grapes, pineapples, yams, and 
various odoriferous and medicinal gums, grow with a 
rapidity and luxuriance unknown in other portions of 
the country. Along the coasts, and in the low humid 
valleys, where the vegetable world seems to have 
reached perfection, the oppressive heat, conjoined with 
the rapid and continuous decomposition of whole 
forests, generates a pestilential and mortal poison, 
which destroys life in a few days; even the natives 

* In Yucatan there are no rivers worthy of the name. f Humboldt. 



16 INTRODUCTION. 

sicken and die if they expose themselves, at certain 
periods, to the influence of these noxious vapors.* 
These districts may be hkened to a vast grave 
covered with flowers, beautiful indeed, but nourish- 
ed with festering corses. 

The mean temperature of the Tierras Calientes is 
from 77° to 79° Fahrenheit; the thermometer often 
rising to 100° in the shade, and sometimes sinking 
to 61° during the winter. 

At an elevation of 4000 to 5000 feet, upon the 
expanded ridges of the mountains, the genial warmth 
of spring reigns, unbroken by the hot breath of sum- 
mer, or the rude blasts of winter. These delightful 
regions are called Tierras Templadas, and possess 
a chmate unequalled upon the earth. The mean 
temperature is from 68° to 70° of Fahrenheit, the 
variation being about ten degrees during the year. 
The productions of the temperate region are both 
abundant and various ; the apple, cherry, straw^berry, 
melons, peaches, olives, wheat, rye, tobacco,t pota- 
toes, and maize ; the last forms the principal food 
of the people in union with chili^ or red pepper, tons 
of which are consumed annually. Great quantities 
of beans are also cultivated on the table lands. Next 
in importance to tlie latter is the maguey (agave 
Americana), from which the natives distil a beverage 
of which they are excessively fond, called pulque, 

* The Vomito Prieto, and malignant intermittents, are the common 
diseases. 

f Tobacco is a government monopoly. 



INTRODUCTION. 17 

and a still stronger liquor, (aguardiente,) which is 
used to great excess in the large cities and towns. 
This plant is one of the curiosities of Mexico; paper, 
thread, and ropes, are made of its fibres, and pins of 
its sharp thorns. To the ancient inhabitants of 
Mexico, the maguey was invaluable. It has been 
called the " vine of the Aztecs." It furnished them 
with medicine and even food. It is cultivated exten- 
sively, and flowers every five or ten years; it grows 
in any soil, and is neither injured by heat, drought, 
or cold. As we ascend the mountains, we reach the 
Tierras Frias (or cold lands), which commence at 
an elevation of 7200 feet above the level of the sea. 
The mean temperature of this region is about 60° 
Fahrenheit, the mercury sometimes sinking below 
40°. The valley of Anahiiac is situated in this zone, 
and is blessed with a climate resembhng that of 
France and Italy, with an atmosphere perfectly trans- 
parent. Owing to the great elevation of the high 
table lands, and the diminished atmospheric pressure, 
the evaporation of fluids is extremely rapid, and gives 
to them a dry barren aspect, which detracts much 
from their beauty. All the productions of the tem- 
perate regions flourish in the Tierras Frias, until they 
rise above 8200 feet. The northern provinces of 
Mexico are equally as fertile as those of the interior, 
though they do not possess their chmate. 

The principal rivers of Mexico are the Rio Bravo 
del Norte, the Rio Santander, the Panuco, the To- 
basco, Santiago, Zacatula, CuHacan, Rio Gila, and 



18 INTRODUCTION. 

the Colorado ; but few of these streams are navigable. 
There are several inland lakes in Mexico; at one 
time nearly the whole of the central plain, or valley 
of Anahuac, was covered by sheets of fresh and salt 
water. 

The principal cities of Mexico are, the capital, 
which is built on the site of ancient Tenochtitlan, 
Queretaro, Guanajuato, Valladolid of Mechoacan, 
Merida, Guadalaxara, Zacatecas, Durango, San Luis 
IPotosi, Puebla, Valladolid of Yucatan, Oaxaca, 
Jalapa, Vera Cruz, Tampico, Acapulco, Monterey, 
.Saltillo, Chihuahua, Mazatlan, Campeachy, and 
Santa Fe of New Mexico. The first fourteen, are 
cities which would grace any country, abounding as 
they do in churches, convents, and palaces, built of 
costly, durable materials, and in an imposing style of 
architecture. The great roads leading to and from the 
capital and chief cities are good; some of them, which 
were constructed by the viceroys, are magnificent. 

The population of Mexico has never been accu- 
rately ascertained; it is estimated to be about eight 
millions and a half. Of this number, four millions 
are Indians, three millions or more are composed of 
Mestizoes, Mulattoes, Zamboes and Negroes. The 
smallest portion is made up of Creoles and Spaniards, 
who are the most intelligent, as they are the most 
opulent of the inhabitants of Mexico. From the 
latter class arise the dignitaries of the church, the 
commanders of the army, and the principal officers 
of the state; while the castes, and Indians are little 



INTRODUCTION. 19 

better than slaves, or serfs, who are bought and sold 
with the land they cultivate. 

The Mexican churches are splendid structures, 
and are the depositories of immense wealth, which 
has been accumulating for centuries. The mass of 
the Mexican people are steeped in poverty, ignorance, 
and vice ; a condition they have been brought to by 
the monstrous policy of their Spanish masters. 

Mexico abounds in stupendous ruins and natural 
curiosities. Among the latter is the volcano of Jo- 
ruUo, in the state of Mechoacan; which burst forth 
on the night of the 28th of September, 1759, from 
the centre of a vast plain, converting it in a few 
hours into a sea of burning lava, from the middle of 
which arose six mountains, from 1,312 to 1,640 feet 
above the surrounding country. The principal crater 
was environed by thousands of smaller ones, from 
which issued sulphureous vapors and subterraneous 
noises. Seventy-five miles north-east from the city 
of Mexico, is the cataract of Regla, which forces its 
way through a gorge, from the sides of which basaltic 
columns rise to the height of more than a hundred 
feet. These columns are composed of regular prisms 
of five or six sides, and resemble those of Staffa, in 
Scotland. There are also numerous thermal springs 
and extensive caves scattered through the country, 
portions of which seem to be hollow like a honey- 
comb; through which flow subterranean rivers and 
volcanic fires. Earthquakes sometimes, though rarely, 
occur in Mexico. 



20 INTRODUCTION. 

The architectural ruins of Mexico are among the 
most interesting in the world, from their extent, pre- 
servation, and the skill displayed in their construction. 
These singular remains are very numerous, and are 
found in all parts of the country, from the Isthmus to 
the Rio Gila. The most important of these edifices 
are those of Mitla, in Oaxaca, of San Juan Teoti- 
huacan, near Otumba. The pyramids of Cholulu, 
and Papantla; the ruins of Xochicalco, and those of 
Chi-Chen, Uxmal, Zayi, Kabah, Ichmul, and Pa- 
lenque in Yucatan : all of which have been described 
by Stephens, Meyer, Norman, Humboldt, and other 
travellers. 

Since the revolution of 1823, Mexico has been 
divided into states, each of which was then declared 
to be sovereign and independent. They are as fol- 
lows: Yucatan, Chiapas, Tobasco, Vera Cruz, Puebla, 
Mexico, Oaxaca, Guadalaxara, Mechoacan, Jahsco, 
Guanajuato, Cohma, Zacatecas, Queretaro, Durango, 
New Leon, San Luis Potosi, Sinaloa, Sonora, Upper 
and Lower California, Chihuahua, New Mexico, Ta- 
mauhpas, Coahuila, and Texas. 

These states have since been changed into de- 
partments which are dependent upon a central con- 
solidated government, the head of which is the 
supreme arbiter of the destiny of the Mexican 
people. 

The Mexican people are a remarkable race, dif- 
fering in all respects from even the mongrel nations 
of the southern continent. They are of a melancholy 



INTRODUCTION. 21 

temperament, and bear in their sad countenances the 
marks of much suffering. The descendant of the 
Aztec is pecuharly distinguished in this way ; and we 
can see in his subdued mien, and pensive features, 
that he has felt the injuries which have been show- 
ered upon his devoted head by the bigoted, cruel, and 
bloody conquerors, who, not content with robbing him 
of his liberty, and the proceeds of his toil, have even 
placed a gyve upon his mind, which has doomed 
him to eternal, as well as temporal misery. The 
Mestizoes, Mulattoes, and other castes, are more gay, 
but less honest and brave. Some of the Creoles of 
Mexico are intelligent, and possess the virtues of 
their Castilian sires in a high degree. 



HISTORY OF MEXICO. 



BOOK I. 



CHAPTER I. 

The Origin of the Mexicans — Montezuma's Account of tlie History of 
his People — The Exodus of the Toltecs, Chichemecas, Acolhuans, 
and Aztecs — Their Conquest of the Valley of Anahuac — The 
Building of Tenochtitlan — Montezuma — His Character — His 
Power and Magnificence — The great Temple of Mexico — The 
Religion of the Aztecs. 

The early history of the Mexicans, the ancestors of 
those who inhabited the vale of Anahuac at the period of 
the Spanish Conquest, is, like that of most other nations, 
involved in clouds of impenetrable obscurity; the slight 
knowledge we are in possession of, serving, like the monu- 
mental ruins scattered over the continent from Yucatan 
to the Rio Bravo, to excite, without gratifying, the curi- 
osity of the inquisitive traveller ; and the origin, rise, 
and progressive development of this singular race, must 
forever remain hidden from the searching eye of the his- 
torian. 

It is the opinion of the learned, who have endeavored 

(23) 



24 ORIGIN OF THE MEXICANS. 

to trace the origin of those tribes which acknowledged the 
sway of tlie warlike Montezumas, that they were descended 
from some of the many wandering barbarian hordes which 
inhabited the wilds of Eastern Asia. Humboldt advances 
the hypothesis, that they may have been a portion of those 
fierce warriors Avho, under the name of Huns, ravaged the 
plains of Europe and Asia, — at one time, threatening the 
destruction of the Roman empire itself; and who obtained, 
from the'* desolating character of their invasions, the terrible 
appellation of the " scourges of God." 

After the death of their leader, the dreaded Attila, who 
died about the middle of the fifth century, the Huns retired 
to their own country, which was among those vast deserts 
which border upon the north of China. It is recorded, by 
the Celestial historians, that a portion of these Tartar 
tribes subsequently advanced far to the north-west, and 
disappeared in the wilds of Siberia; from whence they 
probably reached the shores of the American continent ;* 
the passage from one coast to the other being no great 
enterprise, when undertaken at certain seasons of the year 
when the v^^inds are favorable. 

The traditions, physical organization, and written 
(hieroglyphic) records of the Mexicans, support the above 
opinion; and the advanced state of civilization, which dis- 
tinguished them from the surrounding savages, can be 
accounted for in no other rational manner. The Mexicans 
have a darker skin than the Indians of the north, or than 
those of South America. They have more beard than any 
of the southern tribes, and bear a striking resemblance 
to the Malays of Eastern Asia.f Neither heat nor cold 
affects their color; the native of the Cordilleras is as 
swarthy as the inhabitant of the Tierra Caliente. 

The account given by the ill-fated Montezuma to 
Cortes, of the history of his people, is as follows : 

* Humboldt. j- Ibid. — De Guignes. 



ORIGIN OF THE MEXICANS. 25 

" It is now a long time since, by means of written re- 
cords, we learned from our ancestors, that neither myself 
nor any of those who inhabit this region, are descended 
from its original inhabitants, but from strangers, who 
came hither from a very distant land. We have also 
learned, that a prince, whose vassals they were, conducted 
them to this country ; and then returned to his native land. 
He came again to this region, after the lapse of much 
time, and found that his people had intermarried with 
the native inhabitants, by whom they had many children, 
and had built towns, in which they resided. When he 
desired them to retmni with him, they refused; nor 
would they acknowledge him as their sovereign. So he 
departed; and we have always heard that his descend- 
ants would come and conquer this land, and reduce it to 
subjection."* 

The variety of dialects spoken in Mexico, would seem 
to indicate that the population was composed of many 
different tribes. We learn from the traditions of the 
Mexicans, that the Toltecs, (who were the pioneers who 
opened the way for the other tribes,) arrived in Anahuac, 
as early as the year 648. 

This tribe was far advanced in the arts of civilization. 
They cultivated the fruitful soil, which heretofore had 
scarcely furnished a precarious subsistence to the original 
inhabitants. They planted corn and cotton; built cities, 
and facilitated the communication between them by 
means of public roads. They lived under a regular 
system of government, and were the builders of those im- 
mense pyramids and temples, — the remains of which are 
the wonder of modern times. They were skilled in the 
art of hieroglyphic writing, were acquainted with the use 
of metals, and their method of computing time was more 

* Cortes' Dispatches. 



26 MONTEZUMA THE YOUNGER. 

complicated and perfect than that of the ancient Greeks 
and Romans.* 

The Toltecs were followed, in 1170, by the Chichimecs, 
(from whom the republicans of TIascala derived their 
descent,) and eight years afterwards, in 1178, the Nahuat- 
lacs appeared in Mexico. The latter tribe was succeeded, 
in 1196, by the Acolhuans and Aztecs. These different 
tribes emigrated from the same region, spoke the same 
language, and were united by the ties of a common an- 
cestry; adoring the same sanguinary deities, and living 
under an analogous system of government. 

As the human tide rolled southward, each succeeding 
wave increasing the strength and renewing the energy of 
the invaders, the aborigines of the country withdrew from 
their ancient abodes; unable to resist the power of the 
strangers, or too wise to submit their liberties to the issue 
of a doubtful contest. 

Having gained possession of the most beautiful and 
inviting portion of the continent, the invaders rapidly 
increased in power and in numbers. In the year 1325, 
the great city of Tenochtitlan was built, upon a group 
of small islands, in the midst of the lakes, which at that 
time covered nearly the whole valley of Mexico. Previ- 
ous to this event, the people were governed by petty 
chiefs, like the savages of our own forests; after the build- 
ing of the city, a monarch was elected, whose dominion, 
however, did not extend beyond the walls of the ancient 
capital. 

The progress of the strangers in subjecting the sur- 
rounding territory was slow and difficult ; the neighboring 
ti'ibes Avere fierce and warlike ; and it M^as not until the 
reign of Montezuma I., that the whole valley of Anahuac 



* It was identically the same as that of the Hindoos, Chinese, Thibet- 
ans, and Japanese — another evidence in favor of the Asiatic origin of 
these people. — Humboldt's Researches. 



TYRANNY OF MONTEZUMA. 27 

acknowledged their sway. He was the fifth king of the 
Aztecs, and rendered the name of his race terrible to the 
adjacent tribes. During the reigns of his successors, 
Ahuitzotl, Axajactl, and Montezuma II., the empire re- 
ceived considerable additions in territory and population. 

Montezuma Xocojotzin, or the Younger, who was the 
ninth king of Mexico, was elected to the throne in the year 
1502. He owed his elevation to his wise and virtuous 
conduct; and, like the monarchs of antiquity, he united in 
his person the sacred offices of priest and king.* This 
prince, — either being a tyi'ant by nature, or changing his 
disposition with his state, — no sooner found himself at the 
head of the empire, than he threw off that modesty and 
austerity which had heretofore distinguished him, and 
which, more than his warlike virtues, had gained him the 
esteem of his people. The ceremony of his investment 
with the supreme power, was celebrated with singular 
pomp and magnificence. He made war upon a neigh- 
boring tribe, for the purpose of obtaining victims to grace 
his coronation, and thousands of unhappy captives were 
sacrificed upon the altars of the bloody deities, who were 
supposed to preside over the destinies of the Aztec race. 

His arrogance swelling with his power, he disdained 
to be served by the menials of the royal household, and 
substituted in their stead the first nobles of the empire. 
All the great vassals and feudatory chiefs were compelled 
to reside a certain time at the capital ; and, in their ab- 
sence, to leave their sons and kinsmen at court, as hostages 
for their fidelity. Six hundred of these nobles waited con- 
stantly in the spacious halls of the imperial palace ; their 
persons clothed in the coarsest garments, and their feet 
bare of covering; — for the very precincts of the mansion 
which sheltered their prince, was deemed sacred by these 
barbarians, who revered their sovereign as a demigod. f 

* Clavigero. -j- Ibid. 



28 PALACES, TEMPLES, ETC. 

Like the oriental potentates, Montezuma maintained an 
extensive seraglio, filled with the most beautiful and ac- 
complished women, gathered from every quarter of his 
kingdom.* Upon occasions of high festivity, the monarch 
was served in massive plate of the purest gold, wrought 
with a skill worthy of the costly material. The number 
and variety of the dishes served for the royal repast, 
astonished the abstemious Spaniards, who were accus- 
tomed to a more simple fare. The dishes covered the floor 
of a great hall, and consisted of elaborate preparations of 
fish, game, and tropical fruits. Surrounded by the most 
beautiful women of his seraglio, — listening to strains of 
the softest music, M^hich rolled in harmonious numbers 
through his halls, lulling his ambitious spirit to repose, — 
the Mexican Sardanapalus dreamed not of the impending 
danger, 

" Which, like a pestilence, hung in the sick air," 

was ready to involve his empire and himself in one com- 
mon ruin. 

The Mexican empire, at the period of the Conquest, had 
existed one hundred and thirty years; it extended from 
the 14th to the 21st parallel, comprising an area of 15,000 
square leagues of land, — teeming with exhaustless wealth, 
and warmed by the brightest of tropical suns.f The city 
of Tenochtitlan was worthy of being the capital of a gi-eat 
kingdom, and equalled the proudest cities of Spain in ex- 
tent and population. It was laid out with great regularity 
into streets, intersected by canals, which were filled by 
boats from the neighboring shores. The public square 
was of immense size, and capable of containing fifty 
thousand people. The temples, roj^al palaces, and houses 
of the nobles, were built of stone ; the houses of the multi- 
tude were constructed of wood, and a volcanic substance 
thrown from the craters of the adjoining mountains. The 

* Clavigero. f Humboldt. 



MEXICAN SUPERSTITION. 29 

temple of Mexitli (the Mexican god of war,) was a stu- 
pendous structure, rising to the height of a hundred and 
seventy-seven feet; it was three hundred and eighteen 
feet square at its base, and its form was that of a trun- 
cated pyramid. This edifice was formed of earth and 
stone, and resembled the monuments of a forgotten people, 
which are found scattered throughout Asia.* Three great 
dykes traversed the lake, leading from the city to the 
mainland; they were about thirty feet in width, and 
opened at intervals, for the passage of boats. These 
openings, or canals, were covered with bridges, wide 
enough for ten men to ride abreast. The shores of the 
lakes v^^ere covered by numerous towns and villages, filled 
with a busy population, who maintained an active inter- 
course with the capital.! " Adorned with numerous tem- 
ples, surrounded by water and dykes, founded on islands 
covered vv^ith verdure, and receiving hourly in its streets 
thousands of boats — the ancient Tenochtitlan must have 
resembled some of the cities of Holland, China, or the 
Delta of Lower Egypt." 

The government of Mexico was purely despotic; the 
will of the monarch was the supreme law, from which 
there was no appeal. The country was divided into dis- 
tricts, over which presided a feudatory chief, who held his 
office during the pleasure of the king. The Mexicans had 
a regular system of police, judges, advocates and secre- 
taries.:}: The courts administered justice, and possessed 
original and final jurisdiction, subject alone to the will of 
the sovereign. 

The worst feature in the Mexican character, was the 
cruel and bloody superstition which pervaded the empire. 
It was probably the most debasing and sanguinary reli- 
gious system that ever obtained the homage of mankind. 
The Aztec deities were devoid of a single attractive vir- 

* Humboldt. ] Cortes' Dispatches. :j: Ibid. 



30 MEXICAN TRADITION. 

tue; and w^ere only to be propitiated by the sacrifice of 
human victims, whose hearts were torn from their quiver- 
ing bodies and thrown upon the altars drenched with so 
much gore.* Every street of the capital had its temple; — 
every house its household god, before which the deluded 
heathen prostrated himself in adoration. 

The principal temples were crowded with a multitude 
of priests, who were also the instructors of the Mexican 
youth. These persons never married, but lived apart from 
the people, shut up "within the walls of their several 
cloisters, like the monks of Spain and Italy. f 

All the captives taken in war were destined to meet 
the fate awarded to the conquered, by their fantastic and 
gloomy laws, sanctioned by time and hereditary supersti- 
tion. Not only prisoners taken in battle, but young boys 
and maidens, w^ere also put to death; and even infants 
were sometimes slaughtered upon extraordinary occasions.^ 
This horrible superstition prevailed throughout the nation, 
and even extended to the adjacent tribes, who did not ac- 
knowledge the sovereignty of Mexico; and, from the 
shores of the Gulf to the Pacific, the Avail of victims, and 
the songs of the priests — celebrating the triumph of their 
sanguinary gods, were heard on every side. It is recorded 
by historians worthy of belief, that, at the dedication of tlie 
gi'eat temple, sixty-four thousand persons were sacrificed. 

It is a singular fact, that the Mexicans have a tradition, 
ascribing their knowledge of agriculture and the arts to a 
white man, who landed at the head of a band of strangers 
from the north. He was worshiped, by the Indians, un- 
der the name of Quetzalcoatl, and was the only divinity in 
their calendar who was adored without bloodshed. This 
mysterious being is said to have abhorred their usual mode 
of worship, and instructed them to ofler up bread, flowers, 
and incense. He taught them to found metals, to cut the 

♦Cortes, Clavigero, Humboldt. f Cortes, -^ Humboldt. 



MEXICAN LEGEND. 31 

hardest stones, and to work in gold and silver. Every- 
thing prospered in his reign, and peace and security for 
once usurped the place of war. The Mexican clergy say 
this benevolent stranger was the Apostle St. Thomas, and 
declare, that at one time, the gospel was preached in this 
benighted land.* The Aztecs probably brought these ideas 
with them, from their ancient abodes in Eastern Asia; 
where similar legends prevail among the Tartars, who 
inhabit that region. f 

The empire of Montezuma had reached its culminating 
point, when the Deity, whose laws had been outraged by 
the infernal rites of this people, prepared to pour upon 
their devoted heads the accumulated horrors that a con- 
quered race receive from a bigoted, cruel, and vindictive foe. 

* Humboldt. flbid. 



CHAPTER 11. 

Hernando Cortes — He lands at Vera Cruz — His Force — The Gal- 
lant Defence of the Tlascalans — The Massacre at Cholula — The 
Spaniards enter Tenochtitlan — The Imprisonment of Montezuma — 
The Expedition against Narvaez — The Revolt of the Mexicans, 
and the Death of Montezuma — The Retreat of the Invaders — La 
Noche Triste — The Battle of Otumba — The Fall of Mexico — The 
Cruelty of the Conquerors — Conversion of the Indians — Mission- 
aries — Government of Mexico — Las Casas — Leyas Las Indias — 
Council of the Indies — Philip 11. — His Policy — Decline of the- 
Power of Spain — English Buccaneers — Ignorance of the Mexicans- 
— Their Depravity and Superstition. 

Among the host of adventurous spirits who followed in 
the tracks of Columbus, and sought in the opulent regions 
of the New World, that wealth and distinction denied 
them in the old hemisphere, was Hernan Cortes; a cava- 
lier of no great family, whose only hope of advancement 
depended upon the use he made of the advantages nature 
had bestowed upon him. Though poor and needy, Cortes 
possessed a soaring and ambitious spirit, and a mind and 
person peculiarly suited to carry out the enterprise he was 
called upon to lead. An enterprise, as lofty in its concep- 
tion, as it was complete in execution. 

Cortes landed upon the coast of Mexico on Good Fri- 
day, in the year 1519, at the head of six hundred and 
seventeen men,* sixteen of whom were mounted. He had 
a train of cannon, consisting of ten field pieces and four 
falconets. With this slender force he attempted the con- 

* Five hundred and eight soldiers, and one hundred and nine seamen, 
and artificers. 

3 (33) 



34 CORTES DEFEATS THE TLASCALANS. 

quest of a country, inhabited by a brave and warlike 
people, governed by a prince revered by his subjects, and 
feared by the adjacent tribes, who trembled at his name 
The invaders were allowed to advance into the interior, 
until they entered the territory of Tlascala, when they en- 
countered an opposition as fierce and determined, as it 
was unexpected. The people of Tlascala were among 
the bravest and most warlike nations of the continent; 
they defied the power of Montezuma in war, and scorned 
his endeavors to bring them under his sway in peace. 
They disputed the passage of the Spaniards at every step, 
defending their country with a pertinacity worthy of their 
reputation. And it was not until they had lost the bravest 
warriors of their tribe, that convinced of the superiority of 
the invaders, they ceased their gallant efforts.* 

Cortes entered the citj^ of Tlascala on the 16th of 
September, 1519, and was received as a divinity whose 
arms were irresistible, a child of the sun, whom it would 
have been impious madness to oppose with material and 
ordinary w^eapons. The Spanish soldiers were rejoiced at 
their victory, preceded as it had been by so many contests 
which seemed endless. They murmured loudly against 
their leader, regarding him as a madman, or to use his 
own words, " as a Peter Carbonero, who had brought tliem 
into dangers from which they could not escape." 

Cortes succeeded in forming an alliance with the Tlas- 
€alans, which was never shaken during the war of the 
•conquest. After remaining here for some thirty daj's, the 
Spaniards advanced to Cholula, a city six leagues distant, 
where they were received with all the reverence due to 
their supposed origin. Cholula Avas the holy city of Ana- 
^huac, the place of sacrifice and oblation, the favorite sanc- 
tuary of the gods. It was at this cit^^ that Cortes learned 
■.the design of the people to destroy him. Warned by his 

• Cortes' Dispatches. 



COKTES ENTERS TENOCHTITLAN. 35 

interpreter, Donna Marina, that the Cholulans had sacri- 
ficed six children during the night, in the great temple, and 
by other appearances which indicated hostility, the Spanish 
leader suddenly attacked the enemy and slaughtered six 
thousand of them ; the massacre continuing for two days. 
On the 29th of October the invaders resumed the march 
toward Tenochtitlan, followed by the bravest warriors of 
Tlascala, who were eager to share in the anticipated 
struggle with their powerful enemies, the subjects of Mon- 
tezuma. The conqueror was met on the road by the 
chiefs of the country, who complained bitterly of the 
tyranny of the king. This want of harmony pleased the 
invader, who says he applied to their condition, the w'ords 
of the Evangelist, " Every kingdom divided against itself, 
shall be rendered desolate." 

Cortes entered the city of Tenochtitlan on the 8th of 
November, 1519, and was received by Montezuma with 
emotions of reverence and fear. The Spaniards were 
treated with great hospitalit}-, but as their safety depended 
upon the precarious favor of the Emperor, their position 
became one of extreme peril. In order to ensure his safety 
Cortes seized the person of the prince ; and thenceforth he 
administered the government in the name of Montezuma, 
who was a mere tool in the hands of the crafty Spaniard. 
Cortes used his power to advance his own purposes, eleva- 
ting and deposing such persons as were friendly or hostile 
to his measures. While in the full tide of his success the 
invader received the startling intelligence of the arrival of 
a formidable fleet, fitted out by his enemy Velasquez, the 
Governor of Cuba. Leaving his lieutenant Don Pedro de 
Alvarado with five hundred troops to garrison Tenochtit- 
lan, Cortes marched v»^ith a division of seventy men toward 
the coast. At Cholula he was joined by Velasquez de 
Leon. Soon after he was reinforced by the garrison of 
Vera Cruz, under Juan de Sandoval, one of the bravest of 
his captains. Narvaez, the commander of the hostile 



36 DEATH OF MONTEZUMA. 

expedition, advanced to the city of Zempoalla, proclaiming 
Cortes a rebel to the king, and a presumptuous outlaw. 
By his subtle intrigues, and a liberal use of his gold, the 
conqueror corrupted the faith of the followers of Narvaez, 
and attacking their position during the night, defeated 
them, taking their leader prisoner, and eventually persuad- 
ing his men to transfer their allegiance to himself. By 
his triumph over Narvaez, Cortes obtained an accession to 
his forces of one thousand Spanish soldiers. During his 
absence from the capital the Mexicans revolted and even 
threatened to destroy the garrison. Apprised of this, 
Cortes returned to the city with speed, and was received 
by Alvarado as a deliverer sent from above to his aid. 
Elated by his success, the Spanish leader treated the 
natives with increased haughtiness, and provoked their 
anger, already roused, by repeated injmies. The people 
rose upon the invaders and besieged them in their quarters, 
displaying an intrepidity and reckless ferocity as unexpect- 
ed as it was alarming. They rushed to the very walls 
of the palace which sheltered the sti'angers, and sought 
their deaths " even at the cannon's mouth." Though every 
discharge of the artillery sent a legion to eternity, and 
every blow of the Spanish steel dealt a mortal wound, still 
they fought on, until the shades of night summoned them 
to repose. On the following day Cortes salUed out against 
the enemy, but was compelled to retreat with the loss of 
twelve killed and sixty wounded. Finding it impossible 
to contend with such overwhelming numbers, the invader 
caused the captive monarch to be brought before the 
infmiated people in the hope of quelling their ^vrath. 
Scarcely had JMontezuma appeared, when he fell mortally 
wounded into the arms of his attendants. After the death 
of the royal prisoner the evacuation of Tenochtitlan 
became imperative. Influenced by the prediction of an 
astrologer who M'as attached to his army, Cortes appointed 
an hour for the retreat. On the 1st of July, 1520, at the 



RETREAT OF THE SPANIARDS. 37 

hour of midnight when the city was apparently wrapped 
in skimber, the Spaniards stole in silence from their 
quarters, and taking the causeway that led to Tacuba 
marched toward the main land. The solemn stillness 
which reigned throughout the city was suddenly interrupted 
by the shouts of an immense multitude, mingled with the 
sound of warlike instruments of music. The fugitives 
were assailed in front and rear, and upon each flank at 
the same moment. Crowded upon a narrow dyke, involved 
in darkness, their confusion prevented them from using 
their weapons to advantage. The struggle continued for 
several hours, and when the remnant of the army assem- 
bled at Tacuba, it was discovered that more than half 
their number had perished, or more dreadful still, had been 
taken prisoners by the enemy. The Spaniards lost during 
this melancholy night, their artillery, baggage, several 
horses, and two thousand of their Tlascalan allies. Re- 
treating toward the coast, they were harassed upon the 
march by the Mexicans, who hung upon their rear. When 
they arrived upon the hills, which overlooked Otumba, the 
fugitives beheld an immense army, extending its lines as 
far as the eye could reach. * Placing himself at the head 
of his men, Cortes led them to the charge; after fighting 
with that courage which desperation alone can give, the 
Spaniards killed the Mexican leader, who bore the royal 
standard, and drove his army with great slaughter from 
the field. On the following day, July 8th, the invaders 
arrived at Tlascala, the end of their disastrous march. 

After the lapse of six months, Cortes again advanced 
toward Mexico, at the head of five hundred and fifty 
infantry, forty cavalry, and nine pieces of cannon, together 
with an army often thousand Tlascalans. He began his 
march on the 28th of December, 1520, and captm-ed the 
city of Tezcuco, built upon the shores of the lake, twenty 

* Cortes. 



38 TENOCHTITLAN BESIEGED. 

miles from the capital. Here the Spaniards remained for 
months, preparing for the struggle, and waiting for the 
reinforcements they expected from Cuba. Having obtained 
possession of the lake, Cortes confined his operations to 
skirmishing with the Mexicans, cutting off their supplies, 
and annoying them whenever they appeared beyond the 
walls of Tenochtitlan. 

• On the 3d of July, 1521, the General oi*dered an 
assault upon the city ; his troops eager to revenge the mas- 
sacre of tlie previous year, rushed heedlessly onward, 
neglecting to secure their retreat. The Mexicans attacking 
them in front and rear, drove them back, with the loss of 
several killed and taken prisoners. Following up their 
victory, the enemy charged upon them with impetuous 
valor, and forced them to retire to their camp. That 
night the great temple of Mexitla was lighted up with 
unusual splendor, and amid the songs of barbarous triumph, 
the prisoners who had been captured dming the day, were 
sacrificed upon the altars of the accursed idol. The heads 
of the victims were sent into all the provinces and tribu- 
tary states, announcing that the god himself had proclaimed 
the destruction of the enemy within eight days. Cortes 
defeated the accomplislmient of this prediction by remain- 
ing closely shut up in his camp during the specified 
time. When the natives discovered the fallacy of the 
oracle, tliey flocked in great numbere to the standard of 
the strangers, and the Spaniard soon found himself at the 
head of one hundred and fifty tliousand Indians.* Resum- 
ing their operations with increased energy, the besiegers 
gained possession of the suburbs, and destroying the 
houses as they advanced, they gradually contracted their 
lines so as to confine the Mexicans within a narrow circle. 
The provisions prepared for the support of the people were 
consumed, and famine followed by pestilence rendered the 

* Cortes' Dispatches. 



TENOCHTITLAN TAKEN. 39 

horrors of war yet more terrible. Unshaken in their 
resokition to defend the city to the last, they disputed 
every inch of ground with a constancy but seldom wit- 
nessed, opposing their naked bodies to the steel clad 
Spaniards, and facing death in all its forms, rather than 
submit their liberties to the will of a conqueror. Three- 
fourths of the city was in ruins, every avenue was filled 
with the persons of the dead or wounded, and thousands 
lay festering in the canals around. At length the fierce 
struggle terminated, and the dynasty of the Montezumas 
ceased to exist. The energy of barbarian valor yielded to 
the skill of the civilized invader ; and the crimson banner 
of Cortes, inscribed with the motto of the earliest of Chris- 
tian monarchs, " In hoc signo vinces," floated over the 
ruins of the once proud capital of the Mexican empire. 
The Spaniards exasperated by repeated disasters, and the 
loss of many gallant comrades in the conflicts which had 
varied the siege, signalized their hard vi^on victory, by deeds 
of the most diabolic cruelty. Their Indian allies who had 
many a grievous viTong to avenge, hastened to the scene 
of carnage, and quenched their hatred in the blood of their 
detested enemies. The Mexicans emaciated with hunger, 
and the poison which exhaled from the dead bodies of 
their friends, had continued the contest with a courage 
heightened by despair; and it was not until the last of their 
monarchs, the heroic Guatimozin, had fallen into the 
hands of his pitiless adversaries, that they had ceased to 
fight. When Cortes, followed by his veterans, and fifty 
thousand allies, penetrated into the heart of the beleaguered 
city, and burned the palace of their king, they yielded 
to the stern decrees of fate and retired from the scene of 
horror, rendered yet more dismal by the mom'nful glare of 
the conflagration. 

" So the rude scene did end 
And darkness was the burier of the dead." 

Cortes took possession of Tenochtitlan on the 13th of 



40 THE COUNCIL OF THE INDIES. 

August, 1521, a day long afterwards celebrated by the 
descendants of the conquistadors. The Spaniards soon 
gained possession of the whole country, the lieutenants of 
Cortes emulated their chief, by repeating the massacres of 
the capital in the provinces. The names of Juan de 
Sandoval, Nuno de Guzman, and Pedro Alvarado obtained 
an unenviable celebrity in the annals of the conquest.* 
Having decided upon re-building the fallen city, Cortes 
pressed into his service its former inhabitants, and soon 
beheld the towers of the new capital rising from the ruins 
of the old. In the year 1522, the emperor, Charles V., 
confirmed the conqueror in his government; who now 
reaped the golden harvest he had won by his daring 
enterprise. Following the example of the Spanish col- 
onists in the islands, the invaders proceeded to establish 
the cruel system of slavery, known as encomiendas and 
repartimienteros, which had depopulated the fair isles of the 
western seas within the space of a few short years, f 
The Mexicans and surrounding ti'ibes were divided among 
the soldiery, and forced to till the soil, moistened ^vith the 
blood of their valiant kinsmen and friends. They were 
bought and sold, transferred from hand to hand, and 
thousands perished under the harsh treatment of their 
bigoted masters, with whom cruelty was a principle, and 
inhmuanity a rule of action sanctioned by usage and the 
policy which then prevailed. J 

In order to govern the territories lately annexed to the 
crown, the king of Spain had established a board, known 
as the Council of the Indies, to which was ^r trusted the 
entire management of the colonies. This im;i( rtant body 
had been founded by Ferdinand the Catholic, as early as 
1511, and was carefully fostered by his successors, who 
maintained its dignity, and upheld its supremacy by 



* Cortes' Dispatches. f Las Casas Relacion. 

^1 Robertson — Clavigero — Humboldt. 



BULL OF ALEXANDER VL 41 

invariably approving its decisions, right or wrong.*' In 
this council was vested the control of the affairs pertaining 
to the conquered provinces in the new world; its power 
was paramount in all cases, civil, military, and ecclesias- 
tical ; from it all the laws and regulations governing the 
colonies took their rise. Before it was placed all the 
public and private intelligence relating to them. The 
council also possessed the power of appointing the officers 
of the crown employed in America, from the representative 
of the Emperor, to the lowest official ; to this body the 
functionaries were accountable for the performance of 
their duties, and punished by its decrees, in case of mal- 
feasance in office or disobedience to the laws. In all 
questions of litigation where the amount of property 
exceeded six thousand dollars, the council performed the 
duties of a supreme com-t of judicature, and its decisions 
were final. The king was, ex officio, president of the board, 
and always supposed to be present at its meetings. A 
majority of two-thirds of the councillors was necessary to 
obtain the sanction of the sovereign, to whom its decrees 
were submitted for approval. 

When the trade to the colonies assumed greater im- 
portance, another tribunal was organized, called the Casa 
de la Contratacion, which was located at Seville, and 
performed the functions of a board of trade and marine 
court. It appointed the time when the fleets destined 
for the West should sail, and regulated the freight, bm-then, 
and equipage, of all the vessels employed in the service. 
It was subordinate to the Council of the Indies, and its 
decrees were subject to the inspection of the higher author- 
ity. The Roman Pontiff, Alexander VI. , in a papal Bull, 
issued in the beginning of the sixteenth century, when the 
spirit of enterprise first began to develope itself, divided 
the undiscovered regions of the earth by an imaginary line, 

* Robertson — Cortes' Dispatches. 



42 CONFIRMED BY JULIUS II. 

running from pole to pole ; to the east of this he gave his 
faithful vassals, the Portuguese, unlimited sway over all 
the countries they might discover. He was equally gene- 
rous to the Catholic monarchs of Spain, and pledged 
himself to confirm the right of that power to every isle, 
continent and sea, which reflected their flag in the western 
hemisphere. This was the magna charta upon which the 
kings of Castile and Arragon founded their claims to 
the vast possessions, held by them in America.* These 
possessions were the peculiar property of the crown, held 
by a diiferent tenure from those belonging to the state, 
and were therefore, under the absolute control of the sove- 
reign, whose will was the supreme law of his vassals, in 
spiritual as well as temporal aflairs ; for the Pope Alexan- 
der had also granted to Ferdinand all the tithes belonging 
to the church, upon condition of his providing for the 
religious education of the aborigines. Julius 11. , his succes- 
sor confirmed these privileges, adding to them the patronage 
of all the benefices, dignities, and oflices, usually claimed 
by the Holy See, as her share of the spoil of conquered 
countries. f The Spanish potentates were therefore the 
actual heads of the chm-ch as well as the state ; and their 
voices were potential in all matters relating to the colonies. 
The people were bound hand and foot to the throne, and 
may be said to have existed merely by the sufferance of 
their sovereign, who held their lives and fortunes in his 
grasp. The feudal system as it obtained in the new world 
was far more revolting in its fcatm'es than in the most 
despotic realms of the old world, where there was at least, 
a sympathy between lord and serf, founded upon a com- 
munity of religion and origin ; both were equally white 
skinned, and claimed the protection of the same God. 
The Mexicans on the contrary were a different race from 
their conquerors, and clung with all the tenacity of an 

* Robertson. f Robertson — Humboldt. 



BARTHOLOMEW DE LAS CASAS. 43 

oppressed people, to the manners and superstitions of their 
ancestors ; the builders of those gigantic edifices, conse- 
crated to the sanguinary deities, they had so often propiti- 
ated with the blood of human victims. There was no 
bond of union between master and slave ; no common 
ground admitting of an interchange of those feelings 
possessed by all who bear the likeness of their maker. 
Forced to dig into the bowels of the earth, in search of the 
precious metals, or to toil in the fields to enrich their cruel 
lords, the immediate descendants of the brave warriors, 
who had so fi^ercely resisted the Spanish arms, suffered 
more severely than their successors, for though conquered, 
they were not subdued, and their courage damped, but not 
extinguished, would at intervals blaze out and threaten 
the annihilation of the haughty christians. Upon such 
occasions self-preservation dictated a policy, that owed its 
origin to the first law of nature, however inhuman it may 
have been ; the Indians were put to death whenever they 
revolted, and the survivors goaded on to their task with 
greater cruelty.* The continued recurrence of such scenes 
was soon apparent in the diminishing population; the 
country was strewn with the bodies of the murdered 
natives, and the mournful tragedy of the isles, was upon 
the eve of finding a parallel upon the continent. 

At this melancholy crisis, the Indians found a preserver, 
in the person of the high-souled Dominican, Bartholomew 
de Las Casas, who had more true chivalry in his heart 
than Cortes and all his band, more self-denying virtue and 
moral courage, than all the splendid host of knights and 
barons, that glittered around the throne of the Emperor. 
The wail of the dying Indian, perishing from fatigue and 
famine, though heard from afar, sunk into his heart, and 
aroused a champion in their behalf, whose praises are 
sung while the lays of chivalry are forgotten, and the strong- 

* Las Casas, Relacion. 



44 GRANT IN FAVOR OF THE INDIANS. 

holds of feudal power are mouldering in the dust. Las 
Casas had beheld with horror, in Hispaniola, a whole 
nation melt away like snow beneath the rays of the sun ; 
an innocent happy race, one million in number, reduced 
in the brief space of fifteen years, to sixty thousand miser- 
able beings. In order to prevent a repetition of the calamity, 
the bishop of Chiapa, announced himself the protector of 
the Indians, and appealed to the Emperor, the Council, 
and the dignitaries of the church, and all those interested 
in the fate of the conquered countries ; pleading the cause 
of the unhappy victims of oppression, with all the 
eloquence a feeling heart and a superior intellect could 
produce. He composed a treatise upon the subject,* in 
which he boldly denies the right of the king of Spain to 
dispose of the lives and liberty of his Indian subjects. He 
disputes the formerly unquestioned power of the monarch, 
to make slaves of the natives of distant regions, who being 
without the pale of the church, were deprived of the 
common privileges of humanity. " This work was de- 
nounced by the Inquisition, as opposed to the declarations 
of St. Peter, and St. Paul, concerning the submission of 
serfs and vassals to their lords ;" and the benevolent 
apostle of suffering millions, severely censured for his noble 
efforts in their behalf.f The exertions of Las Casas were, 
however, productive of much good; the Emperor, Charles 
v., moved by his eloquence, granted several important 
ordinances in their favor. The Indians were declared to 
be freemen, subject to the crown alone, and the conquerors 
were forbidden to treat them as slaves, or otherwise oppress 
them.J Commissioners were dispatched to Mexico, for the 
purpose of rectifying the evils complained of, and the 
condition of the natives was somewhat improved. The 
Spani.sh colonists found means nevertheless, to evade the 

* Brevissima Relacion de la Destruyion de las Indias. 

f Llorente's History of the Inquisition. ij: Leyas delas Indias. 



FANATICISM OF THE SPANIARDS. 45 

laws in part, and continued the system of slavery under 
the plea of necessity; and the laws enacted in their favor, 
had no other effect than to legalize the odious cruelties 
practiced in Mexico. By the laws of the Indies, the En- 
comendero, or proprietor of an estate, was obliged to reside 
in the district subject to his power, and to protect the 
vassals committed to his charge ; he was also enjoined to 
civilize and instruct them in the duties of life. When the 
Spaniards began to work the rich mines of gold and silver 
which abounded in the country, the sufferings of the natives 
were truly horrible ; by the law of the Mita, every Indian 
within a certain distance of a mine, was compelled to 
serve a definite period, under the lash of the task- 
master. Thousands fell victims to the labors imposed 
upon them ; forced to descend into damp and unwholesome 
caverns, inspiring a pestilential atmosphere, the miserable 
wretches pined away and perished.* The fierce warriors 
of Anahuac, soon began to lose their ancient courage and 
energy, under the infliction of repeated injmies, and the 
descendants of the defenders of Tenochtitlan could scarcely 
be recognized in the subdued and degenerate serfs. In 
accordance with the spirit of the age, and the commands 
of the church, one of the first objects of the Emperor, in 
regard to the improvement of the natives of the new world, 
was to provide for their speedy conversion to the true faith, 
by sending missionaries among them from Spain. Cortes 
and his followers, although they were men of violence 
and blood, were still deeply tinctured with the religious 
fervor of the times. The cnisading spirit of the Spanish 
nation was not yet extinct, and in the late contest with 
the Moors of Grenada, the cavaliers who followed the 
standard of the Conquistador into " pagan lands," had 
imbibed a feeling of fanaticism, which urged them to 
use every exertion to bring the infidels within the fold of 

* Humboldt. 



46 LABORS OF THE MISSIONARIES. 

the church. Every soldier considered himself an apostle, 
whose high privilege it v\^as, to convert the heathen, and 
force them to acknowledge the divinity of the holy Virgin. 
The moment a city v^as taken, these rude promulgators 
of Christianity, rushed to the temples, overthrew the blood- 
stained images of paganism, cleansed the altars, and after 
appropriating the rich ornaments of barbaric gold to their 
own use, they would erect an image of the Virgin in their 
place ; commanding the astonished natives to fall down 
and worship their God, who v^as mightier than the gods 
of Tenochtitlan or Cholula.* 

The missionaries sent over by the king, entered upon 
their duties with a zeal, seldom equalled by the apostles 
of any faith or country. They did not pause to acquire 
the language of the natives, or to explain the doctrines of 
the church, but proceeded at once to baptize them in the 
name of the blessed Virgin, and to administer the holy 
sacrament ; punishing the apostates with the infernal 
tortures prescribed by the Inquisition. Such was the 
enthusiasm of these holy fathers, that a single priest would 
baptize his thousands between the rising and the setting 
of the sun. 

" Peter of Ghent, a Flemish monk, writing from Mexico 
in 1529, says, that himself and another missionar}', had 
converted two hundred thousand Indians; their ordinary'" 
day's work being from eight to ten thousand souls ! " Such 
was the industry of the monks, that a few years after the 
conquest, the number of proselytes amounted to fom' mil- 
lions. But sudden conversions are seldom permanent, and 
it was soon discovered that the Indians had consented to 
accept the rites of the church, to conciliate their masters, 
making a reservation in favor of their own gods. So great 
indeed was the indifl'crcncc of the Mexicans, in relation to 
the mysteries of religion, that the priests fomid it absolutely 

* Cortes' Dispatches. 



MODE OF GOVERNMENT. 47 

necessary to permit them to retain a portion of their origi- 
nal superstition, and to connive at the " amalgation of 
holy rites, with pagan ceremonies, confounding the exalted 
doctrines of Christianity, with the absurd and gloomy 
fancies, pertaining to the Aztec mythology." Even up to 
the present time, the religious knowledge of the Mexicans 
is but scanty. " The introduction of the Romish religion," 
says Humboldt, " has had no other effect upon the Indians 
of Mexico, than to substitute new ceremonies and symbols 
for the rites of a sanguinary worship. Dogma has not 
succeeded dogma, but ceremony to ceremony. I have 
seen them, masked and adorned with tinkling bells, per- 
form savage dances around the altar, while a monk of 
St. Francis elevated the host."* 

His observations have been corroborated by subsequent 
inquiries; and the hideous idol of Teoyamiqui is yet held 
in reverence by the ignorant peons, and her collossal image 
adorned with their votive garlands. f The Inquisition was 
established at Mexico in 1570, by Philip II., and the first 
auto-da-fe was celebrated in the capital in 1574, in a style 
of magnificence, which eclipsed those of Spain. Two 
heretics were burnt upon the occasion, a Frenchman, and 
an Englishman; and eighty others subjected to various 
tortures. J It was found necessary, however, to circum- 
scribe the power of the Inquisitors, as nearly every native 
in the country had become amenable to its dreaded laws, 
by worshiping the gods of his ancestors. 

The government of Mexico was confided to a Viceroy, 
and the Courts of Audience, one (Audienzas reals) of 
which was located at the capital, and had jurisdiction over 
the southern portion of the kingdom ; the other was at 
Guadalaxara, and extended its sway to the northern 
provinces. The members of these royal com'ts were 

* Humboldt's Narrative. f Bullock — Pike's Narrative. 

% Llorente, Hist. Inq. — Meyer's Mexico. 



48 SPANISH ADVENTUKERS. 

Europeans; who were forbidden to hold lands, to marry 
in the colonies, or to form any attachments to the land they 
were sent to govern. They were ministers of justice, and 
all causes, civil or criminal, were disposed of by them. 
An appeal could be made to the Council of the Indies, and 
their decrees could be annulled by that powerful tribunal. 
The Judges of the Audiences were appointed by the 
Council, sometimes by the Viceroy, subject to the approval 
of the former. The Viceroy of Mexico enjoyed unlimited 
power over the lives, property, and liberty of the people. 
They were generally men of high rank and great influence, 
Avhose delegated authority, may be said to have exceeded 
that of the sovereign they represented. They had their 
guards of honor, lived in sumptuous palaces, attended by 
a multitude of servants, and never stirred abroad, unless 
smTounded with all the pomp and magnificence of regal 
splendor. The will of this potentate was the supreme law 
of the land, and however unjust or tyrannical he proved, the 
people w^ere constrained to submit without a murmur to 
his arbitrary rule. The sanctuary of justice was frequently 
invaded by the Viceroys, and the course of law tm^ned 
aside to shield a favorite from impending ruin, or to 
advance the interests of some pliant courtier. The suc- 
cessors of Cortes in the government of New Spain, 
pursuing the policy of the Conqueror, riveted the chains 
imposed upon the unhappy Indians, and connived at the 
cruelties practiced b}'^ their avaricious masters. 

The tumult of war had scarcely ceased in the hills 
and valleys of Mexico, when the country was flooded with 
advcntm'ers ; who urged by " the accursed love of gold," 
deserted the dusty plains and barren mountains of Spain, 
and pursued their way across trackless seas, in search of 
the opulent regions of El Dorado. Scorning the monoto- 
nous pursuits of agriculture, these needy cavaliers explored 
each mountain pass, and ri\ailet, in the eager pm-suit of 
the concealed ti'casures, locked in the bosom of the earth. 



POWER OF SPAIN. 49 

Unbounded wealth often rewarded their enterprise ; and 
the impoverished hidalgo returned, to dazzle the eyes of 
the court, with his countless ingots of gold and silver. 
His success excited the cupidity of others, and all occupa- 
tions, save that of mining, were held in contempt. The 
consequence was, that although the land teemed with 
fruits, and required but a trifling degree of labor to bring 
forth an hundred fold; the necessaries of life became scarce ; 
and the mother country was called upon to supply her 
famishing colony with bread. This gave an impetus ta 
the agricultural and marine interests of Spain, and laid 
the foundation of the greatness she attained, during the 
reign of Charles V., and his immediate successors. Taking 
advantage of the dependance of the early settlers, the. 
king, in order to bind them in triple chains to the footstool 
of the throne, prohibited the manufacture of the mos^ 
necessary articles, and compelled them to look to the^ 
parent state, for the comforts and luxuries of existence.* 
The tide of wealth that pom'ed into Spain from the new 
world, exalted her above the nations of the earth, and 
paved the way for her ultimate degradation, by enervating 
her people, and exciting the ambition of her kings. Such 
was the demand for manufactured articles in the colonies^ 
that the number of persons employed at Seville in weaving, 
exceeded one hundred and thirty thousand, w^ho were yet 
unable to furnish a sufficient supply. The Spanish marine 
was greater than the combined fleets of Europe, and 
whitened the western seas with their sails, conveying 
the riches of the empire to and fro. 

After the abdication of the wise and able Charles, in 
1556, his son, the bigoted Philip, intoxicated by the vast 
power and resources pertaining to the crown, determined 
to assert the supremacy of the church, by annihilating the 

* Robertson — Humboldt. 



50 DECLINE OF POWER. 

enemies of the true faith, wherever found, at home or 
abroad. He made war upon the four quarters of the 
globe, in his insane endeavor to consummate his designs. 
Spain was drained of her population to recruit his armies, 
and of her Indian wealth to support them, and soon felt 
the effect of the monarch's ambition, in her diminishing 
trade and empty coffers.* Fortunately this prince died 
"before he had completed the ruin of his country, and was 
succeeded, in 1598, by his son Philip III., who, if he lacked 
the capacity of his sire, was also destitute of ambition. 
In fact, he was better fitted for an Inquisitor than a king, 
and signalized his reign in 1609-10, by yielding to the 
desires of the holy office, by expelling from bis dominions, 
the most industrious and skilful portion of his subjects; 
these were the Morescoes, %vho retired to Africa, the home 
of their ancestors .f This emigration nearly ruined the 
manufactories of Spain, and cost her a million of her 
people. She was therefore obliged to curtail her opera- 
tions. The earth was no longer cultivated for the want 
of laborers, and the most fertile parts of Andalusia and 
Valencia, were changed from blooming gardens into desert 
wastes.J The busy looms of Seville ceased their work, and 
silence and desolation reigned, where the hum of indus- 
trious thousands had so recently echoed. The mighty 
fleets of Spain no longer ruled the M^aves, her trade was 
interrupted, her galleons were plundered, and her flag 
insulted by the English buccaneers of the Spanish main. 
In this melancholy condition she was unable to supply the 
demands made upon her by the colonies for food and the 
essentials of life. They, too indolent or ignorant to provide 
-for their own wants, Avere obliged to call to their assistance 

* Watson's History of the reign of Philip II. 
f Llorente. 

jji They yet remain in that desolate condition. Spain has never recov- 
lered from the shock she then received. 



DEGRADATION OF SPAIN. 51 

the enemies of their religion, the heretics of England and 
Holland; or perish amidst the mines of Mexico and Peru.* 
They possessed the golden wand of Midas coupled with its 
fatal power; and were often reduced to the extremity of 
the famous Phrygian king. The nations of western 
Europe, the French, English, and Dutch, responded to the 
call, and willingly engaged to furnish the requisite sup- 
plies; and the treasures of the Mexican El Dorado were no 
longer to be considered the peculiar property of kings, to 
be squandered in cruel and unnecessary wars; but encour- 
aged the industry, and rewarded the toil of the frugal 
English and ingenious French. The energy of Spain 
seemed exhausted by the efforts she had made during the 
sixteenth century, to overawe the world and bring the 
nations under subjection. As the colonies increased in 
extent and population, the internal resources of the parent 
state diminished, until she was unable to provide more 
than a twentieth part of the productions consumed in her 
American possessions.! The precious metals were drained 
from her merchants by those of the surrounding countries, 
and such was the scarcity of coin, that Philip III. found it 
imperative to raise the nominal value of copper to that 
approaching silver, in order to meet the exigencies of his 
administration .J The people of Spain had moreover 
become demoralized, by the prodigious quantity of gold 
that had poured in upon them, in so copious a stream, 
duruig the reign of the Emperor and his successor. They 
became luxurious, effeminate, and extravagant, and for- 
saking the virtues of their poor but chivalric ancestors, 
sunk into an abyss of superstition and vice. The Inquisi- 
tion, with its demon train of midnight tortures and secret 
murders, reared its portentous head, threatening misery 
upon earth, and eternal punishment hereafter, to all those 
who sought to enlighten their fellow creatures. Ignorance 

* Robertson — Humboldt. f Robertson. % Ibid, 



52 INFLUENCE OF THE INQUISITION. 

and gloomy fanaticism pervaded the realm, and extended 
to the remotest corners of the colonies, crushing each noble 
aspiration, and extinguishing every scintillation of intel- 
ligence. And it was not until hundreds of thousands of 
her best subjects had perished in the dungeons or at the 
stake,* that Spain was able, by a mighty eifort, to throw 
off the monstrous system. 

* Llorente. 



CHAPTER III. 

Colonial History Continued — The Tyranny of Spain — The Mexican 
Hierarchy — Its Splendor — The Inferior Clergy — Their Power — 
The War of 1739 — The Policy of Philip V. —The Revolt of 1778 

— Proposition of the Count D'Aranda — The Provinces of Mexico 

— Its Population. 

The early colonists who followed in the wake of the 
conquerors, seldom encumbered themselves with females, 
but formed connections with the natives, which resulted in 
a population of various castes, who inherited the pride of 
the Castilian, and the indolence of the Indian, without a 
single virtue pertaining to either. This mongrel race 
composed of every shade of color, were taught to consider 
the kings of Spain as the rulers of the four quarters of the 
globe; before whose footstool kneeled the princes and 
potentates of the earth, and upon whose wide extended 
dominions the light of day perpetually shone. In their 
endeavors to keep the inhabitants of the colonies in sub- 
jection, the Spanish sovereigns guarded with suspicious 
vigilance, every movement that had a tendency to elevate 
the people from the degraded position their policy had 
assigned them. The descendants of the original settlers 
were prohibited from holding offices, or participating in 
the administration of the country. To have been born upon 
the soil which nourished them, seemed to forever disqualify 
them from the privileges granted to the natives of Spain. 
The Creoles, shut out by the laws from those employments 
which are the usual objects of human ambition, possessed 
no inducements to excite them to improve their under- 
standings, had they the opportunity of doing so; the 

(53) 



54 COLONIAL HISTORY. 

jealousy of the government forbidding them to attain even 
a moderate share of the little intelligence which served to 
illumine the darkness that involved the mother country. 
The only species of knowledge permitted to be taught in the 
schools, were an imperfect acquaintance with the Latin 
tongue, monkish theology, and the civil and ecclesiastical 
laws. History, the sciences, and the various arts which 
dignify and adorn modern society were utterly unknown to 
liie opulent but debased Creoles of New Spain ; who wasted 
their lives in frivolous occupations, or reveled in the gulf 
of vice and luxury. Every office of profit or honor was filled 
by Europeans; the viceroy, the judges of the Audiences, 
the military, revenue, and municipal authorities, were all 
selected from the native born Spaniards.* The dignitaries 
of the church, the Inquisitors and their familiars, were 
likewise appointed by the court of Madrid. Of the fifty 
viceroys who governed Mexico, but one w^as an American. 
In pursuance of her policy of rendering her colonies depen- 
dent upon herself alone, Spain absolutely prohibited all 
intercourse between them and other countries. By an 
ordinance of 1692, Charles II. made it a capital oifence 
for a foreigner to enter the Spanish possessions witliout a 
royal permit; even Spaniards were excluded, under severe 
penalties of fines and confiscation, from intruding, unless 
by special license. By the same ordinance, vessels putting 
into their ports in distress, were seized as laM-ful prizes; 
condemned (in defiance of the usages of civilized nations) 
to be confiscated, and the crew imprisoned. The inhabi- 
tants of the different provinces were interdicted from 
holding intercourse with each other, and the commodities 
of one were never exposed for sale in the adjacent colonies. f 
Commerce and ti'ade were restricted in every movement 
by the oppressive duties and taxes levied by the govern- 
ment. Nothing was bought, sold, or exchanged, without 

* Humboldt — Robinson's Memoirs. f Humboldt. 



TYRANNY OF SPAIN. 55 

being subject to a dutj', called the Alcavala, which 
varied from fourteen to six per cent.; it was a tax upon the 
vender, a forfeit paid for disposing of an article to be used 
for the benefit of another. Its operation was most injurious, 
as it was a direct imposition upon the productions of the 
country, not governed by the wealth of the consumer. 
The Alcavala was of Moorish origin, and had been intro- 
duced into Spain as early as the middle of the fourteenth 
century by Alphonso XI. Every avenue to justice was 
closed to the poorer classes ; none but the wealthy were 
able to conduct a suit at law to a successful issue, through 
the interminable and complicated forms of the courts ; 
equity, under these circumstances, was out of the question, 
as the laws were framed to benefit the few Spanish adven- 
turers, rather than the mass of the nation. Political of- 
fences were punished with a severity unknown in other 
countries; the unfortunate object of mere suspicion, being 
treated with the same rigor as those guilty of the most revolt- 
ing crimes. The torture was frequently resorted to, in order 
to extort from the unhappy prisoner a confession of real 
or supposed crimes against the state. Imprisonment for 
life was a comparatively slight punishment; and when 
once incarcerated in the gloomy dungeons of San Juan de 
UUoa or the Inquisition, the miserable captive pined in 
solitude, until death released him, forgotten by his contem- 
poraries or remembered as one long since departed.* If 
the offender sought redress from the Council of the Indies, 
years elapsed before a definite answer was returned to 
his petition, or an effort made to repair the injury inflicted 
by the unjust decrees of the colonial courts. The whole 
system of government was one act of unparalleled outrage 
against the right's of humanity. The tyranny of the Vice- 
roy and royal Audiences was closely imitated by the infe- 
rior officers, as is usually the case, the higher functionaries 

* Robinson's Memoirs of the Mexican Revolution. 



56 TYRANNY OF SPAIN. 

lording it over those beneath them. The Indian Alcalde 
was as despotic as the representative of the king, and 
inspired as much dread among the naked slaves over 
Vi^hom he ruled w^ith an iron hand. In the latter part of 
his reign, Charles III. abolished the encomiendas and repar- 
ti?nientos, the law of the Mita and its attendant horrors.* 
The Indians w^ere again declared homines liberi, who owed 
allegiance to the crown alone, but as they performed 
nearly all the laborious work, they continued to be consi- 
dered a part of the soil upon which they lived, and from 
their ignorance, poverty, and degradation, were incapable 
of asserting the privileges guaranteed them by the royal 
ordinances. 

Living among themselves, apart from the white popu- 
lation, whom they looked upon as their natural foes ; the 
descendants of the once powerful Aztec continued to che- 
rish the vindictive feelings inherited from his ancestors, and 
sighed for the ancient glory of his race, as he walked in 
melancholy silence among the gigantic ruins of pyramid 
and temple, consecrated to the religion of his fathers. 
The Mexican hierarchy during the Spanish domination 
was probably the most opulent and splendid in the world ; 
the enthusiastic missioneros who had followed the conquer- 
ors from motives of disinterested piety, were soon succeeded 
by a swarm of monks, friars, inquisitors, and their familiars, 
who crossed the sea in pursuit of the objects of their own 
^.mbition, rather than to do the holy cause they had enlisted 
in, the service expected of them. It has been previously 
stated, that the Pope granted to the kings of Spain the 
revenues of the colonies derived from the tithes usually 
levied by the Romish Church ; the king had also the ap- 
pointing of the different dignitaries, and exercised his 
unusual prerogative in degrading even the religion he 
professed into an insti"ument of oppression. The clergy 

* Leyas de las Indias. 



CHURCH REVENUES. 57 

were the mere tools of the monarch, and dependent upon 
his will, more than on the pontiff himself. Fortunately, 
however, the policy of the prince did not conflict with that 
of the priest; the political system of the former, and the 
theological one of the latter, were alike based upon the 
same pedestal of intellectual degradation. The Mexican 
hierarchy consisted of the Archbishop of Mexico, the 
Bishops of Puebla, Oaxaca, Valladolid, Yucatan, Guada- 
laxara, Durango, Monterey, and Sonora, whose united 
revenues amounted to one hundred and forty-five thousand 
pounds sterling. The Archbishop received of the above, 
twenty-seven thousand pounds. The whole number of 
priests, monks, and friars, was about ten thousand. In the 
capital there were thirt}^-eight convents, containing three 
thousand three hundred individuals.* Religious houses 
were founded in every part of the country within a short 
time after the conquest, and at a later period missions 
were established upon the remotest frontiers of the Vice- 
royalty, for the purpose of bringing the savage tribes 
beneath the Spanish sway. The clergy were generally 
natives of the parent state, and devoted to the interests of 
the king, the chm'ch, and the inquisition; seldom learned 
or gifted with superior talents, they passed their lives in 
criminal indulgence, or in the enjoyment of that luxurious 
repose, so inviting to the indolent in the sunny climes of 
the far south.f The ecclesiastics had not refused to be- 
come the proprietors of immense estates under the ancient 
system, and although individually under a vow of poverty, 
they managed collectively to absorb some of the most 
valuable property in the dependencies; upon which they 
too often lived, forgetful of their duties and their God. J 



* Humboldt's Pol. Essay, Vol. I. f Rob's. Hist. America. 

X The amount of property in munus muertus (mortmain) in Mexico, at 
the beginning of this century was valued at $44,500,000. Of this sum, 
the diocese of Mexico held $9,000,000, the diocese of Puebla $G,500,000, 



58 CURAS, OR VILLAGE PRIESTS. 

The vassal of the convent or mission fared equally misera- 
ble, whether he served the monks of San Francisco, or the 
decayed hidalgo seeking for treasure ; both were alike 
bigoted, avaricious, and cruel. To support the immense 
religious establishment, the people were taxed on every 
side ; they were obliged to pm'chase a certain number of 
papal bulls during the year, and if a person was known 
to be without the Bull of Confession, he w^as denied the 
rites of absolution and extreme unction, his will w^as 
broken, and his property confiscated. Indulgences were 
sold publicly, and the venality and corruption of the 
church was equal to that of the state. While the monk of 
Wittemburg was eradicating the superstitions of popery, 
and kindling the fires of reformation in the old world, the 
missionaries of Charles V. were sowing the seeds of Ro- 
mish faith broadcast from the Isthmus to the Gulf of 
California. There was one portion of the clergy, however, 
who were neither the tyrants of the people, nor accumula- 
ted wealth in tlie name of religion, to be lavished in frivo- 
lous amusements or the gratification of sensual appetites. 
This class was the Curas, or village priests, who contented 
with the moderate income derived from their parishes, 
which seldom exceeded one or two hundred dollars per 
annum, lived in obscurity amongst the humble peons* 
committed to their charge. As the ofiice was the lowest 
in the church, and oflered no inducement to those who 
aspired to rank or opulence, the Curas were usually natives 
of the country ; either Creoles or persons of mixed blood, 
whose natm-al dispositions, or the piety of their parents, had 
dedicated them to the holy calling. Destitute of learning 
themselves, they were incapable of improving the minds 



the regular clergy $2,500,000, and the different churches and monaste- 
ries $16,000,000,— HUMBOI.DT. 

* The Mexican serfs who live on the plantations are called peons, 
those who live in towns and villages are designated pueblos. 



INFLUENCE OF THE CURAS. 59 

of their flocks, but contented with their position, led an 
easy tranquil life performing their daily round of sacred 
duties. From their situation this portion of the priesthood 
were brought in direct communication with the most 
oppressed and degraded part of the population, the descend- 
ants of the ancient inhabitants, or those of mixed blood, 
who labored upon the estates or in the mines of the nobility. 
The interest of the curates became identified with those 
of their charge, and they were looked up to with feelings 
of veneration and esteem. If they were maltreated by the 
Justicia, or the Alcalde, the serfs fled to the Cura for pro- 
tection, and submitted their difficulties to his consideration, 
sure of finding a friend in the holy father. The power 
exercised by these humble churclimen over the passions, 
and minds of the lower classes was tremendous, and ex- 
ceeded that of the Viceroy, or the other orders of the clergy; 
and to their influence rather than to the power of the 
government, may be ascribed the docility of the Mexicans 
under the tyrannical Spanish rule.* Among the village 
Curas were occasionally to be encountered, men of superior 
talents and indomitable energy, which required but an 
exciting cause for their development. From the ranks of 
the inferior priesthood sprang the champions of Mexican 
liberty, men who had passed the greater part of their lives, 
in ministering to the spiritual wants of a few naked In- 
dians in some wretched pueblo. Suddenly stepping forth 
from their obscurity and grasping the sword, they led 
armies to the field ; and had their intelligence been equal 
to their talents, victory would doubtless have crowned their 
efforts in the cause of human emancipation. The names 
of Hidalgo, Morelos, and Matamoros, are indissolubly 
identified with the early struggles of the patriots, and their 
exploits are yet remembered in the Cordilleras of Mexico. 
During the reign of Philip V., the first Bourbon Idng of 

* Memoir of the Bishop of Mechoacan to Charles IV. 



60 WAR BETWEEN ENGLAND AND SPAIN. 

Spain, the condition of the people in the transatlantic 
colonies was somewhat improved, it was even proposed to 
throw open the trade to all nations ; the king we are told 
"relished the project," but the nieasiu"e was violently op- 
posed by the Council of the Indies. In the year 1739, the 
English government declared war against the Spaniards, 
in consequence of the cruelties and barbarities exercised 
upon divers subjects, whose vessels had been seized by the 
Guarda Costas of the latter. The king of Spain claimed 
the right of searching all foreign ships sailing in the wes- 
tern seas ; and for this purpose maintained a numerous 
fleet of armed vessels known as Guarda Costas. The 
injuries sustained by the English produced the declaration 
of war, in which it is set forth, that " the unjust practice 
of stopping, detaining, and searching ships and vessels 
navigating in the seas of America, is not only of the most 
dangerous consequence to the lawful commerce of English 
subjects ; but also tends to interrupt and obstruct the inter- 
course between Europe and the colonies and plantations 
in America."* 

The war that ensued was one of wholesale plunder 
upon the part of the English, and feeble and inefiectual 
resistance on that of Spain, whose rich galleons, ladened 
with the gold of the Mexican and Peruvian mines, fell an 
easy prey to the cupidity of their assailants. The capture 
of a single ship, sufficed to enrich the fortunate adventurers 
and satisfy the cravings of the most avaricious freebooter. 
The ocean swarmed with privateers under the British flag, 
and but a fraction of her colonial wealth reached the 
mother country. Spain soon became aware of the injury 
she sustained, and craved a termination of the hostilities 
she had provoked, by her iniquitous and arrogant proceed- 
ings against the rights of her gallant enemy. At the 
general peace between England, Spain, and France, Philip 

* Extract from the Declaration of War, October 19th, 1739. 



CONTKABAND COMMERCE. 61 

v., granted the Assiento, or privilege of supplying his colo- 
nies with negroes, to the former power, and moreover, 
permitted an English ship of five hundred tons, laden with 
the products of that country, to be annually sent to Porto 
Bello. By this unlooked for liberality upon the part of 
Spain, the veil which had covered the colonies from the 
time of the conquest was removed, and the agents of a 
free people allowed to enter the territories she had guar- 
ded with so much care. Charles HI., in 1765, relaxed the 
prohibitory system still more, and much good resulted from 
his wise regulations. Enough of evil, however, remained 
to render the Mexicans extremely miserable ; the trade of 
the country, as well as the government, was in the hands 
of natives of Spain ; no Creole being allowed to engage in 
commerce. The cultivation of flax, hemp, tobacco, the 
vine, and olive, was likewise forbidden or monopolized by 
the government.* The Mexicans were prohibited from 
the use of arms, and in the northern provinces, fell before 
the inroads of the fierce Camanches, and Apacheras of the 
plains ; whole districts were desolated by these hardy tribes, 
towns were pillaged, fields laid waste, and the defenceless 
inhabitants, ignorant of the use of fire-arms, were carried 
off to the wilderness, or perished by the lances of the truc- 
ulent invaders. t Smuggling vessels also infested the 
coasts, which being well manned and provided with can- 
non, forced their way through the Guarda Costas, and 
landing their goods in spite of opposition, defied the efforts 
of the government to prevent their bold intrusions. The 
contrabandists were from all parts of the world, and seem 
to have conspired to break down the odious prohibitory 
system by defeating its successful operation. 

This singular mode of commerce was kept up during 



* Humboldt. 

t Since the disarming of the Mexicans in 1835, these same tribes 
have been desolating these same provinces. 



62 REVOLT OF THE INDIANS. 

the continuance of the prohibitory laws, and goods were 
introduced in prodigious quantities to the alarm and cha- 
grin of the parent state. The diffusion of the comforts and 
luxuries of life, is not the only benefit accompanying the 
commerce between distant nations. A greater blessing 
than the mere results of mechanic art is borne upon the 
seas ; knowledge, which to a certain extent is power, is 
also shed abroad upon the earth, wherever the enterprising 
mariner anchors his bark. 

In spite therefore of the laws, the Guarda Costas, or the 
fear of the dreaded inquisition, the inhabitants of the colo- 
nies were slowly but surely awakening to a sense of their 
degradation, and the people began to question the policy 
of the Spanish government. Representations were made 
to the court of Madrid, soliciting from the king an exten- 
sion of commercial privileges in the latter part of the 
eighteenth century. The prayers of the colonial mer- 
chants were listened to, and as Spain was rapidly losing 
her transatlantic trade, Charles IV., by a royal ordinance, 
issued 1770, opened all the ports of the mother country to 
the colonies. This was no inconsiderable concession 
upon the part of the government, and would probably have 
been delayed had a less amiable monarch than Charles 
IV. been seated on the throne. 

The ordinance above mentioned, although it conciliated 
the higher classes among the JMexicans, did not affect the 
masses ; who, trodden to the earth by their superiors, were 
still the slaves of the native nobility, and bore the yoke im- 
posed upon them with impatience, obliging the Viceregal 
authority to increase the already tyrannical measures 
used to quell the rising spirit of insubordination. This 
only hastened the anticipated revolt by driving the op- 
pressed Indians to despair. 

In 1778, the people in some of the provinces took up 
arms against their rulers, and evinced during the brief 
struggle which followed, a degree of intrepidity and energy 



POLITICAL DIVISION OF MEXICO. 63 

which filled the Spaniards with alarm. The power of the 
government was, however, yet strong; the habit of obe- 
dience was too firmly rooted in their hearts to allow the 
rebels to carry on a successful conflict with their masters. 
Spain had not alienated the affections of the Creoles of 
Mexico, nor had the rural clergy yet learned to hate the 
lordly sensualists who governed the Mexican church. The 
rebellion was soon checked, the leaders put to death, and 
the unhappy Indians once more compelled to resume 
their toils, uncheered by a single hope of future happiness. 

After the termination of the revolution in the United 
States, the Count D'Aranda foreseeing the dangers the 
colonies of Spain were exposed to by their contiguity to the 
former, proposed to the king in 1789; that he should divide 
Spanish America into three principalities, each to be 
governed by an Infante of the royal family, who should be 
tributary to the Spanish crown. This scheme, which might 
have retained the dependencies in subjection, was violently 
opposed by the Council of the Indies as impracticable; the 
true reason of their hostility being founded upon the certain 
destruction of their dignity, and vast power, should the pro- 
position be adopted. The Count's proposal was abandoned 
without further consideration. Infl845^Hhe project of 
placing an Infante of Spain upon the throne of Mexico, 
was again renewed, after an interval of half a centmy 
of anarchy, bloodshed, and desolation, as the only means 
of settling the distractions of the country, and estab- 
lishing a government upon a solid and permanent basis. 

Mexico had been divided in 1776, into twelve intendan- 
cies and three provinces, designated as follows : The 
provinces of New Mexico, Upper and Lower California, 
the intendancy of Durango, Sonora, and San Luis Potosi, 
the latter including Coahuila, San Andero, New Leon, and 
the country beyond the Rio Grande. These were again di- 
vided into two grand military governments, each under the 
command of a Captain General, who was subordinate to 



64 POLITICAL DIVISION OF MEXICO. 

the Viceroy. These territorial divisions were known as the 
eastern and western internal provinces. The southern 
part of Mexico was partitioned off into the intendancies of 
Zacatecas, Guadalaxara, Guanajuato, Valladolid, Mexico, 
Puebla, Vera Cruz, Oaxaca and Yucatan. Each of which 
were governed by an intendant, generally an officer of 
the army. The whole population of Mexico, in 1805, was 
computed at five million eight hundred and thirty-seven 
thousand one hundred souls, three-fourths of whom were 
Indians or persons of mixed blood. 



BOOK II. 



CHAPTER I. 

The opening of the 19th Century — The Condition of France — Spain, 
Mexico, and Europe — The Administration of D'Urquijo — Charles 
IV. — Queen Louisa — The Prince of Peace — The recession of Lou- 
isiana to France by the Treaty of St, lUdephonso — Cession of the 
same Territory to the United States. 

With the advent of the year 1800, a new era dawned, 
upon the world; ushered in amidst the smoke and carnage 
of war and revolution, the century emerged like the sun 
from the clouds and darkness of the tempest, which had 
obscured its glorious rays, rendering them yet more brilliant 
from their temporary absence. The patriots of 1776 had 
thrown off the fetters of the mother country, and had com- 
pelled the haughty Britons to yield to their revolted 
colonies a share in the sovereignty of America. The De- 
claration of Independence, and the sentiments therein 
expressed spread over the earth with the rapidity of light, 
and penetrating the barriers with which the despotism of 
governments, and the t}Tanny of kings had fenced in the 
rights of man, taught them by precept, and a most noble 
example, to shake off the lethargy which for ages had 
bound them, the slaves to custom and hereditary wrong. 

The terrific struggles of France were over. The dynasty 
of ages had sunk, vdth all its empty splendor and hollow 
5 (65) 



66 CONDITION OF FRANCE. 

greatness, crushed beneath the load of crime and pohtical 
iniquity, which had been accumulating for a thousand 
years; and from the awful desolation which succeeded 
its downfall, arose a structure remarkable for its simplicity 
and firmness. The club of the Jacobins was no more, the 
guillotine no longer reeked with human blood, offending 
heaven and earth with its gory sacrifices. The altars of 
a venerable but superstitious religion, though still remain- 
ing overthrown and unrespected, were not polluted by the 
"worship of murderous ruffians of the impersonation of the 
ideal of reason, which, in their madness, they had sought 
to place upon the throne of the Omnipotent. 

The destinies of France were in the keeping of one, in 
•all things equal to the mighty task of restoring peace and 
■order, from the chaos of anarchy and tumult, which threat- 
ened the ruin and utter extinction of one of the most 
polished and energetic nations of the earth. The weak 
and infamous directory, covered with a thousand crimes, 
threw itself for safety into the arms of Napoleon Bonaparte, 
upon whose side fortune seemed to wait, ready to crown 
every effort with success. From the shores of the Nile to 
the banks of the Rhine, the powerful genius of Bonaparte 
had carried all before it ; the Pyramids of Egypt echoed to 
the thunder of his cannon, and upon the renowned fields 
of classic Italy he had asserted the supremacy of France. 

England, which of all nations prior to the close of the 
eighteenth century was the most favored, in the full enjoy- 
ment of the blessings which flow from a free and national 
system of government, was rapidly advancing to that state 
of prosperity she has since attained. Germany, Norway, 
Sweden, Denmark, and Holland, were all awakened to a 
lively perception of the era which had dawned upon them. 
Spain alone seemed unconscious of the change which had 
come over the face of the earth ; she seemed to sleep 
amidst the tumults around her, contented with the enjoy- 
iHient of the slight consideration she received from her 



UNHAPPY CONDITION OF SPAIN. 67 

sister states. But the corruption of ages had done its 
work; the throne was undermined, and ready to fall into 
the abyss that yawned beneath it; the energy of this once 
powerful and chivalric nation was paralyzed, and the 
proud Spaniard about to fall a prey into the hands of the 
invader. 

" The King, the Queen of Spain, and the Prince of 
Peace, engaged the attention of Europe, and exhibited a 
spectacle dangerous for royalty, already so much lowered 
in the estimation of nations. One would have supposed 
that the illustrious house of Bourbon was destined to lose 
their crowns in France, Naples, and in Spain; for in these 
three kingdoms, three sovereigns, of imbecile weakness, 
had exposed their sceptres to the derision and contempt of 
the world, by leaving them in the hands of three queens — 
either giddy, violent or dissolute."* The King, Charles 
IV., was an honest man, but weak and vacillating; an 
admirable judge of horse-flesh, but a poor sovereign ; an 
ingenious mechanist, an ardent sportsman, an indulgent 
husband and father, but a most ridiculous statesman. Don 
Manuel Godoy, absurdly called the Prince of Peace, was the 
virtual ruler of Spain ; he was the favorite of the king, and 
the paramour of the wanton queen, who, for twenty years, 
had submitted her person, as well as her " v:acant and 
frivolous mind," to his control. Foolish, vain, and igno- 
rant, Godoy administered the affairs of government to suit 
his own selfish and depraved pm-poses ; regardless of the 
honor of his prince, or the prosperity of the nation. While 
the treasury of the kingdom was exhausted, and forced to 
make shift vdth a depreciated paper currency, the favorite 
collected vast sums, which he dissipated in debaucheries 
of the grossest kind.f 

The colonies felt the evil effects of this reckless admin- 
istration more than the parent state. Every officer, from 

* Thiers' Hist., Consulate and Empire. f Ibid. 



68 PATRIOTIC EFFORTS OF D' URQUIJO. 

the viceroy to the humblest official, was appointed hy, or 
subject to, the approval of the favorite. Places of profit 
and honor vi^ere sold to the highest bidder, or conferred 
upon unvrorthy persons, M^ho had recommended themselves 
to the prince by their zeal in pandering to his licentious 
appetites. One would suppose, that Mexico existed 
merely to supply the queen and her lover with the means 
of gratifying their passions; and that its millions of peo- 
ple were engaged in rifling the earth of the precious 
metals in order to enrich the former with the spoils. 

Taxes, duties, and exactions of all kinds, were levied 
upon the Mexicans, without regard to the ability of the 
victims to pay them ; the domestic trade between the 
provinces languished under the infliction, and the harbors 
no longer resounded with the cheerful noise of a bustling 
population. The patriotic minister, Don Mariano Luis 
D' Urquijo, in vain endeavored to raise the declining 
greatness of his country; although equal in all respects to 
the duties of his station, as premier and secretary of state, 
his efforts were hampered by the fatal influence of the 
favorite. He encouraged the arts and liberal sciences, 
and the world owes to him a debt of gi'atitude, in per- 
mitting Humboldt to traverse the Spanish possessions in 
America, although contrary to all laws and precedent ; 
D' Urquijo assisted the great traveller, in his enterprise, 
with all the zeal of one passionately attached to the ad- 
vancement of human knowledge.* 

With the aid of Admiral Mazarado, he revived the 
fallen navy of Spain ; and was the first man of rank in Eu- 
rope who meditated the abolition of slavery in the colonies. 
In 1779, he obtained a decree which restored to the 
crown the power which had been usurped by the chui'ch; 
and delivered the people from an annual impost of several 
millions, produced by the sale of dispensations, bulls and 

* Llorente. 



RECESSION OF LOUISIANA TO FRANCE. 69 

briefs. He did not stop here, but attempted to suppress 
the tribunal of the Inquisition, intending to apply its re- 
venues to useful and charitable purposes.* 

As might have been expected, this was an unpardonable 
error; nor did his enemies rest, until this truly great states- 
man was hurled from his position, and his virtues rewarded 
by being confined in the gloomy dungeons of Pampeluna, 
deprived of light, fire, and the necessaries of life.f The 
Mexicans felt the absence of the benign influence of his 
power, and the injuries they had sustained previous to his 
administration were renewed after his downfall. 

The successors of D' Urquijo possessed neither his 
intelligence nor his honesty; the power of Spain continued 
to decline, until she became the mere shadow of her former 
self. The intrigues of the miserable creatures that haunted 
the court, shut out every patriotic or disinterested indivi- 
dual who ventured to approach the royal person. It was 
a short time previous to this, that Napoleon, whose saga- 
city warned him of the impossibility of retaining Egypt as 
a province of France, proposed to the king of Spain, that 
he should recede the colony of Louisiana to its original 
discoverers. The proposition was listened to favorably 
by the king, who was flattered by the attentions of the 
first consul, and easily fell into the snare. 

General Berthier was dispatched to Madrid, with full 
powers to negotiate. An eventual treaty was agreed 
upon, at St. Illdephonso, in 1800, by which the first consul 
bound himself to grant an additional territory to the Duke 
of Parma, (the queen's nephew,) which would add a mil- 
lion of souls to his subjects; he also promised to give his 
highness the title of King of Etruria, and maintain him in 
his position against the combined influence of Europe.J 
In consideration of the above, Spain engaged to cede to 
France the colony of Louisiana, with the same extent of 

* Llorente. f Ibid. j^ Thiers' Consulate and Empire. 



70 CESSION OF LOUISIANA TO THE UNITED STATES. 

territory it possessed when transferred to the former by 
Louis XV.* 

The region referred to in the treaty, comprised the 
whole of upper and lower Louisiana, the island of Orleans, 
and the country lying to the west of the Mississippi, known 
by the Spaniards as the Province of Texas. f The French, 
under La Salle, in 1685, commenced the first settlement 
of Louisiana, on the banks of the La Baca river. The en- 
terprise did not succeed, and the colony was afterwards 
removed to the Mississippi. Yet the French continued to 
regard the territory on the western shores of the latter 
stream as their possession, and ceded it to Spain as such; 
their right to it being founded upon discovery and occupa- 
tion. By the negotiations concluded at St. lUdephonso, 
the sovereignty of the whole of this region, in its original 
integrity, was invested in the French.J 

As the Spaniards derived not the least profit from their 
Louisiana colony, it was to the interest of the government 
to rid itself of so distant and unprofitable a dependency. 
The French did not retain the country thus easily acquired, 
but disposed of it to the United States, in 1803, for eighty 
millions of francs ; twenty millions of which sum was to 
be paid as an indemnity to American citizens, for the spo- 
liations committed on their property by the cruisers of the 
former on the high seas. 



* Marbois' Hist. Louisiana. 

"j-U. S, Papers. — Livingston's Letters. 

:J: Marbois' Hist. Louisiana. 



CHAPTER II. ^ 

The Abdication of Charles IV. — Ferdinand VIT. proclaimed King by 
the Mexicans — The Violent Deposition of the Viceroy of Mexico,Itur- 
rigaray — Vanegas — His Administration — Conspiracy against the 
Government — Its Premature Disclosure — Padre Hidalgo — The 
Revolt — Capture of Celaya — The Rebels enter Guanajuato — 
Storming of the Alhondiga — The Sacking of the City, and Mas- 
sacre of Colonel Riana and his Troops. 

The brilliant successes which attended Napoleon in his 
career of conquest, at length produced a sensation even in 
Spain. The revolutionary opinions so rife throughout the 
world, found their way across the Pyrennees, and aroused 
the Spaniards from their apathy, Charles IV., incapable 
of resisting the storm which threatened to overwhelm him, 
fled to his palace at Aranjuez. His enemies now in open 
revolt pursued him, and surrounding his retreat, menaced 
him and his consort with instant death, unless he acceded 
to their wishes. The poor king, weak, irresolute, and des- 
titute of a single quality which would enable him to resist 
the rebels, reluctantly signed his abdication on the 19th of 
August, 1808; and his son, Ferdinand VII., began his 
troubled reign upon the same memorable day. 

Charles protested against the abdication; asserting that 
it was done through fear, in order to preserve his own life, 
and those of his family. The royal and supreme council 
of Castile ordered an examination into the validity of the 
act, that the people might be informed, that they were no 
longer the subjects of the deposed prince. Ferdinand 
treated the protest with contempt, and Bonaparte seizing 

(7n 



72 POLITICAL DISSENSIONS. 

the moment when the Spaniards were divided among them- 
selves, proclaimed his brother Joseph king of Spain. 
Ferdinand, who was then at Valence, wrote to Joseph 
Bonaparte, congratulating him upon his elevation, and 
requesting his friendship ; he also commanded all of his 
former subjects in Spain and the colonies, to recognize the 
brother of Napoleon as their lawful sovereign. 

This philosophic indifference on the part of Ferdinand, 
did not meet with the approbation of his transatlantic 
subjects, who were too far removed from the influence of 
France to be driven into a transfer of their allegiance to a 
stranger. The people of Mexico, as well as those of Car- 
raccas determined to adhere to their legitimate sovereign, 
and accordingly proclaimed Ferdinand VII., with every 
demonstration of loyalty. The king secretly approved of 
their conduct, although he dissembled his satisfaction in 
public, and even ratified a decree of the Council of the 
Indies, commanding the Mexicans to acknowledge Joseph 
Bonaparte as their ruler, while he covertly excited the 
people against that personage.* 

The European Spaniards residing in Mexico, were 
nearly all members of the French party, designated in 
Spain as Francises. The Creoles, on the contrary, were 
faithful to the Bourbons, and publicly burnt the proclama- 
tions of king Joseph, and denounced his adherents as 
enemies to the country. During this turbulent condition 
of the public mind, which threatened to produce the most 
disastrous results, the Viceroy, Don Jose Iturrigaray, 
distracted by the conflicting orders he received from Ferdi- 
nand, Joseph, and the Council of the Indies, resolved to 
summon a Junta of Notables in imitation of that of Seville. 
The Junta was to be composed of the Viceroy, the 
Archbishop of INIexico, the representatives from the 
municipality of the capital, the nobilit}^ principal citizens, 

and the army. The hatred which existed between the 

f — . . — . _ 

* Memoirs of the Mexican Revolution. 



CONSPIRACY OF THE CREOLES. 73 

Creoles and European Spaniards would not admit of such 
an arrangement, as it was proposed to admit the Creoles 
upon an equality with the natives of the mother country. 
The Francises determined to defeat the plan, by forcibly 
deposing the Viceroy. Arming themselves, the Spaniards 
of the capital proceeded in the dead of night, on the 15th 
of September, 1808, to the palace of the Viceroy, and ar- 
resting him and his family, sent them prisoners to Spain, 
accusing him of heresy and treason. Iturrigaray was 
carried to Seville, committed to a dungeon, without a trial, 
where he remained three years, until released by an act of 
general amnesty in 1811! This outrage excited universal 
indignation against the perpetrators, who were neverthe- 
less able to retain the government in their own hands, 
until the arrival of Vanegas, the successor of Iturrigaray. 
The character of this personage was not calculated to 
engage the affections of the people he was sent to govern. 
He commenced his administration by permitting the mas- 
sacre of several distinguished Creoles, and outlawed and 
banished many others, who had been the supporters of the 
late Viceroy. His cruelty increased in proportion as he felt 
his power over the people ; he preferred to govern by fear 
rather than affection. He soon became odious to the Mexi- 
cans of all ranks, and although warned of the consequences 
of his t}rranny, he continued to exercise his power, reckless 
of the future. Conspiracies among an oppressed people 
generally precede an open revolt, which is the last resort 
of the slave against his master. The Creoles of New 
Spain, numbering in their ranks many persons of intelli- 
gence and energy, were the first to combine against the 
government; disappointed in obtaining a voice in the 
management of their country, they secretly conspired to 
overthrow the Viceroy, and his Franco -Spanish adminis- 
tration. Emissaries were sent into the provinces and 
principal cities, who were instructed to ascertain the dispo- 
sition of the natives toward the government, and enlist 



74 PROGRESS OF THE CONSPIRACY. 

all the disaffected in the plot.* These agents were re- 
ceived with open arms by many persons of wealth and 
distinction, some of whom were members of the clergy and 
ofRcers in the army, who disgusted with the cruelty and 
licentiousness of the Viceroy were eager to witness his 
downfall. The preparations of the conspirators were 
made with all the celerity the occasion demanded ; the 
village curas aroused the Indians who were under their 
spiritual guidance, and without letting them fully into the 
intentions of the leaders of the plot, darkly intimated that 
the long delayed hour of vengeance was at hand. Finally 
every thing was ready for a simultaneous rising in the 
provinces adjoining the capital, when the revolt was has- 
tened, and the direction of the plot changed, so as to fill 
those who had set it in motion with horror and dismay, 
by one of those unforeseen accidents M^hich often 
defeat the best arranged plans. The canon Iturriaga, 
one of the conspirators who belonged to Yalladolid, was 
taken suddenly ill, and feeling his end approach, he ex7 
posed the secret plot to his confessor, a priest of Queretaro, 
gi\ing the names of the principal persons implicated. The 
priest immediately revealed the astounding intelligence to 
the authorities of Queretaro, who arrested the corregidor 
of that cit}', who was denounced by the canon that very 
night. This alarmed the plotters, \vho had no choice left, 
but speedy submission or resistance. 

The Viceroy, Vanegas, thunderstruck at the intelligence 
conveyed to him of the existence of the conspiracy, at once 
proceeded to stay the progress of impending rebellion, by 
arresting all those who had been designated as leaders by 
the canon of Valladolid de Mechoacan. This accelerated 
the movements of the denounced, who having agents in 
the capital, and even in the palace itself, received timely 
warning of the designs of the Viceroy. 

♦ Robinson's Mem. Revolution of INIexico. 



HIDALGO'S REBELLION. 75 

In the intendancy of Guanajuato, a few leagues distant 
from the rich city of that name, lived Miguel Hidalgo y 
Costilla, curate of Dolores, a village or ■pueblo inhabited 
principally by the descendants of the original lords of 
Mexico. Dolores is about thirty miles north-east of Guan- 
axato, and in this place and the neighboring tow^n of San 
Miguel el Grand, a considerable number of the disaffected 
resided, aw^aiting the signal of revolt. Vanegas ordered 
the arrest of Hidalgo and his associates as soon as he 
received the startling information from Queretaro. An 
express was immediately sent to the conspirators, which 
reaching San Miguel el Grand in safety, communicated to 
Don Ignacio Allende the intentions of the Viceroy ; this 
officer commanded a small number of regular troops sta- 
tioned at this point. He was implicated in the plot, and 
lost no time in warning the curate of the threatening danger. 
Every moment was precious, it was too late to fly, the only 
hope left them was immediate and energetic resistance. 
Allende persuaded his men to join the party. Hidalgo 
gave the expected signal for the rising; and the standard 
of rebellion was raised on the night of the 15th of Septem- 
ber, 1810; being the opening scene of a bloody and re- 
volting tragedy, which desolated the fairest portion of the 
new world, and turned many a smiling province into a 
barren waste. 

It has been observed, that those political convulsions, 
which, under the name of revolutions, disturb the ti'anquil- 
lity of states, are as often the result of accident as design; 
the passions of men being engaged more than their pru- 
dence or their principles. Hidalgo's insurrection was of 
this kind; — hurried onward by mingled emotions of pride 
and fear, the Curate of Dolores prepared for the desperate 
struggle, reckless of the consequences. The Indians, over 
whom the priest possessed unbounded influence, flocked 
to the rendezvous in great numbers. Advancing to San 
Miguel, the rebels were joined by the soldiers under Al- 



76 SUCCESS OF THE REBELS. 

lende ; from thence, they proceeded to Celaya, where they 
received into their ranks the garrison of that place, and an 
immense crowd of Indians, rudely armed with slings, clubs, 
and bows and arrows. The insurgents now amounted to 
more than twenty thousand men. 

In order to stimulate his followers, Hidalgo raised the 
cry of "Death to the Gachupins," (Spaniards,) and the In- 
dians, taking it in a literal sense, were impatient to give 
vent to their long suppressed feelings of vengeance. 
Their steps were tracked with blood ; they murdered 
without remorse every Spaniard, and many Creoles that fell 
into their hands ; and the ancient quarrel between the two 
races was about to be renewed. The Creoles, the greater 
portion of whom were decidedly opposed to the govern- 
ment, horror-struck at the excesses of the rebels, now 
found it necessary, in self-defence, to throw themselves 
into the ranks of the Spaniards. 

Hidalgo, who, in the main, was neither blood-thirsty nor 
cruel, in vain attempted to control the fierce passions of 
his disorderly army ; he had raised a storm he was unable 
to guide, and repented, when too late, of the error he had 
been guilty of, in authorizing the war-cry of his followers. 
He advanced, without delay, upon the city of Santa Fe de 
Guanajuato, the capital of the province, and one of the rich- 
est towns in Mexico. His approach filled the inhabitants 
with consternation. The governor of the place. Colonel 
Riana, shut himself up with a number of the more resolute 
in the Alhondiga, (a large building used as a store-house,) 
with an immense amount of the public treasui-e intrusted 
to his keeping. 

When the rebels displayed their forces upon the hills 
which surround Guanajuato, and, descending, approached 
the gate of Marfil, the inhabitants, filled with consterna- 
tion, gave up all thoughts of resistance; the garrison, 
placed there for the defence of the place, overawed by 
the superiority of the insurgents, threw down their arms 



GUANAJUATO SACKED. 77 

and joined the enemy. Hidalgo now summoned the gov- 
ernor to surrender, promising him good treatment if he 
compHed with the demand. This offer was indignantly 
refused. An attack was immediately made upon the Al- 
hondiga; it was taken by assault, and Riana, and all the 
Spaniards and Creoles who were with him, massacred 
upon the spot. The rebel chief exhausted himself in use- 
less efforts to save them: the revengeful passions of his 
men could only be satisfied with the blood of their former 
masters. Three days were spent in sacking the opulent 
city, and, situated as it was in the heart of the richest 
mines of Mexico, the treasure which fell into the hands of 
the insurgents was prodigious. The precious metals were 
found in quantities, stored away in private dwellings, as 
well as in the public buildings. Every man in Hidalgo's 
army was laden with doubloons, dollars, and ingots of gold 
and silver.* 

Enriched with the spoil he had taken, the leader of the 
rebellion paid his followers a dollar a day, and allowed his 
officers to help themselves from the military chest, ad libi- 
tum. This generous liberality failed not to increase his 
popularity, already great. By the sack of Guanajuato, 
the rebels acquired four millions of dollars. Such was the 
ignorance of the Indians, that they sold their doubloons for 
half a dollar a-piece, supposing them to be gilt medals of 
the Virgin of Guadaloupe, w^hich it was customary to wear 
suspended from the neck, as a kind of charm. f 

The success of the insurgents filled the viceroy with 
astonishment and alarm, while it encouraged the oppo- 
nents of the government in a corresponding degree. Thou- 
sands flocked to the standard of the curate, and he soon 
felt powerful enough to make a demonstration upon the 
capital of Mexico itself. He accordingly advanced towards 
that city, his force augmenting in numbers every hour. 

* Robinson's Memoirs. ■j-Ibid. 



78 CAPTURE OF MECHOACAN. 

Turning aside from the direct route to Mexico, the rebels 
marched upon and captured the episcopal city of Valladolid 
de Mechoacan, one of the most important places in the 
viceroyalty. The spirit of revolt spread with great rapid- 
ity, and soon extended to every part of the country within 
fifty leagues of the capital. The Spaniards in the large 
cities began to tremble for their safety, and invoked the 
aid of the home government, to protect them from the 
threatened danger. At this crisis, had any man of dis- 
tinction declared in favor of the insurrection, the issue of 
it would have doubtless been very different. But the ex- 
cesses committed by the Indians disgusted the more intel- 
ligent Creoles, who, though they hated the viceregal power, 
were shocked at the thought of a war of extermination. 



CHAPTER III. 

The Evacuation of Valladolid — The Rebel Host advances upon the 
Capital — The condition of the City of Mexico — The Insurgents 
Excommunicated — The Royalists Defeated atLasCruces — Hidalgo 
Encamps in sight of the Capital — His sudden Retreat — The Battle 
of Aculco — Massacre at Guanajuato — The Recapture of Valladolid 
— Battle of the Bridge of Calderon — Capture and Death of Hidalgo. 

The rebels evacuated Valladolid about the middle of 
October, and continued their progress toward the capital. 
Halting at Indeparapeo, Hidalgo reviewed his force, which 
now numbered more than one hundred and ten thousand 
men, not a thousand of whom were armed with muskets ! 

On the 24th of October, Hidalgo, casting aside his 
sacred garments, which up to this time he had worn, ap- 
peared in the full uniform of a Spanish general, amid the 
acclamations of his wild and enthusiastic followers, who 
believed him to be under the special protection of the 
Virgin of Guadaloupe.* Leaving Indeparapeo, the now 
formidable army resumed its march toward the city of 
Mexico, moving slowly, and in admirable disorder. One 
of the greatest difficulties in bringing a large force into 
the field, is to furnish the necessary quantity of food 
for its consumption. The Mexicans are, however, the 
most abstemious people in the world, and this immense 

* It is said, he had a small image of the Virgin which, by a mechani- 
cal contrivance, was made to nod its head, as if in approbation of his 
words, whenever he harangued his disorderly host of ignorant and deluded 
partisans, who solemnly believed it to be a veritable miracle ! ! 

(79) 



80 THE REBELS EXCOMMUNICATED. 

army lived luxuriously upon the fruit, which was the 
spontaneous growth of the country they were traversing. 

On the 27th of October, the insurgents entered and took 
possession of Toluca, a town thirty-six miles from the ca- 
pital. The Viceroy, filled with alarm at their approach, 
issued a proclamation, threatening all those found in arms 
against the government with instant death, if taken, and 
promising a free pardon to all who would throw down 
their arms and disperse. He also called to his aid the 
powerful influence of the clergy, to quell the rebellion; 
and the archbishop of Mexico excommunicated the rebels 
in a body, as heretics and enemies to the church and state. 
The inferior members of the priesthood were ordered to 
exercise the power they possessed through the confessional, 
in maintaining the cause of the Viceroy against the people. 
But Hidalgo, being a priest himself, laughed at the spirit- 
ual thunder hurled against him, and easily convinced his 
followers of the impotency of a curse pronounced by a 
Gachupin bishop. 

Vanegas, however, did not rely upon the church alone 
in the hour of peril, but prepared to defend the city, in 
case it should be attacked ; adopting every means within 
his reach to repel the enemy. He barricaded the princi- 
pal streets, and distributed arms and ammunition to the 
inhabitants, warning them of the awful consequences, if 
the infuriated Indians captured the city. His exertions 
were not in vain; the people were awakened to a sense 
of their danger, and willingly assisted in the preparations 
for defence. 

As the rebels continued to advance, Vanegas sent out 
a detachment of regular troops, under Colonel Truxillo, to 
reconnoitre, and, if possible, to check their progress. 
Truxillo took up a position in the defile of Las Cruces, 
about twenty-four miles distant. Hidalgo, as he ap- 
proached, sent him a flag, demanding a parley; the roy- 
alist refused to receive it, and even fired upon the bearer ! 



INDECISION OF HIDALGO. St 

This so exasperated the curate, that he ordered his men to 
charge ; an overwhelming force poured into the defile, and 
Truxillo was compelled to retire, with the loss of his artil- 
lery, and a number of his men killed and wounded. 

The rebels followed closely at their heels ; and on the 
31st of October, arrived at the hacienda of Quaximalpa, 
on the heights of Santa Fe, a few miles from the capital,, 
which could be seen from their position. The inhabitants 
and authorities of the city waited in anxious expectation 
for the return of Truxillo ; and when he was descried has- 
tening back, with all the diligence of a fugitive before a, 
pursuing foe, they began to despair, and abandon all 
thoughts of resisting so powerful an adversary. 

The Viceroy was unable to muster more than two or 
three thousand regular troops, whose fears rendered them 
incapable of a desperate defence, should the enemy ad- 
vance. The European Spaniards, who are naturally a 
brave and loyal race, were well aware of the terrible fate 
which awaited them, if they fell into the hands of their 
pitiless foes, and were therefore determined to hold out to 
the last moment. The native nobility who resided in the 
capital, the rich landholders and proprietors of mines, were 
equally odious to the rebels, and trembled at the danger 
which threatened them; whilst the Icperos Indians, Mnlat- 
toes, and vagabonds of all descriptions who infested the 
city, to the number of twenty thousand, sharpened their 
knives and prepared to share in the expected conflict, the 
spoils of both parties. 

Hidalgo, instead of attacking the almost defenceless 
place, sent a flag to the Viceroy, demanding the surrender 
of the city. No answer was returned to the summons;, 
and Vanegas encouraged by the imbecihty of the rebel 
chief, sent emissaries into his camp, who mingling with his 
followers, impressed them with the impregnability of the 
capital to any force destitute of artillery and fire-arms. 
This caused the insm-gents to hesitate, at the critical time 
6 



§^ RETKEAT OF THE REBELS. 

when the fate of Mexico was in their hands. The Viceroy 
gained his point, the hesitation so fatal to the enemy was 
his salvation. He hourly expected the arrival of Don 
Felix Maria Calleja, who was marching Avith a large force 
to the relief of the city; time was more valuable to the 
representative of royalty than all the gold which glittered 
in the mines of Mexico and Peru. 

Huge and undisciplined masses of men when destined 
for any peculiar service, must be continually employed, 
lelse their enthusiasm wanes, and their passions lacking 
ifood declines, and leaves them spiritless and destitute of 
tcnergy. It was so in this instance. Hidalgo's army, 
'which hung like a threatening cloud upon the mountains, 
;ready to burst and overwhelm the imperial city which lay 
^t its base, upon a sudden was seized with a cowardly 
panic, and fled without striking a blow at the object of their 
expedition. Calleja arrived shortly after their departure, 
and was ordered to pursue the retreating rebels, who had 
taken the road to Guanajuato. The Spanish force amounted 
to but six thousand men, who were however, well disci- 
plined and provided with artillery. Moving forward rapidly, 
Calleja came up with the fugitives at Alculco; and on the 
7th of November the armies joined battle. 

The Indians began the fight by charging en masse upon 
the columns of the enemy; they precipitated themselves upon 
the bayonets and cannon of the Spaniards, and at first 
drove them backwards; but the latter, though few in num- 
ber were formidable from their discipline, and soon re- 
gained their lost ground. The battle raged with singular 
fury. The Mexicans ignorant of, or despising the effects 
of the artillery, approached fearlessly to the very muzzles 
of the guns, and placing their sombreros* before them, 
endeavored to prevent their explosion. Unprovided with 
fire-arms and destitute of that confidence in the support of 

* Broad rimmed hats, made of Palmetto or flags. 



CRUELTY OF CALLEJA. 83 

their fellow-soldiers, which is the result of a high state of 
discipline, the insurgents soon discovered that they were 
unequal to the small but compact body which opposed 
them. In vain their rude and disorderly masses threw 
themselves upon the Spanish columns, and with their clubs 
endeavored to drive them back. At each successive dis- 
charge of the fatal cannon, hundreds fell bleeding to the 
earth, who cumbered the ground and impeded the motions 
of the belligerents. At length the firmness of the royalists 
began to make an impression upon the minds of their foes, 
who despairing of victory, wavered for an instant, and 
then throwing down their arms, fled in terror from the field. 
The work of death now commenced in earnest; the flying 
Mexicans were pursued and cut down by thousands. No 
mercy was given or asked ! The slaughter continued 
while a rebel remained on the scene of the bloody encoun- 
ter, nor was the vindictive fury of the Spaniards appeased, 
until they had immolated ten thousand of their brave but 
reckless adversaries.* Hidalgo retreated in confusion to 
Guanajuato, but being pursued by Calleja, he continued 
his flight to Guadalaxara, leaving his lieutenant Don 
Ignacio Allende, with a division of his army to defend the 
pass of Marfil which commanded the entrance to the 
former city. 

Allende was attacked by the Spanish leader soon aftec^ 
wai'ds; and, notwithstanding his gallant resistance, he 
was driven from his position, and compelled to retire, with 
loss, upon the main body. Calleja entered Guanajuato in 
triumph, and determined to signalize his victories by an 
act which would forever render his name terrible through- 
out the land. Pretending to suspect the inhabitants of the 
unfortunate city of having espoused the cause of the rebels, 
he ordered his troops to drive the people into the gi-eat 
square; w^here, in obedience to his commands, fourteen 

* Robinson's Memoirs. 



84 BATTLE OF THE BRIDGE OF CALDERON. 

thousand persons — men, women and children — were butch- 
ered in cold blood. Their throats were cut; and their 
mutilated remains were piled in great heaps in the plaza. 
The inhuman Calleja, boasting, in his dispatches to the 
government, that he had " effectually purged the city of its 
rebellious population;" offering as an apology for the 
mode of sacrifice, the scarcity of powder and ball !* 
From Guanajuato, the Spanish leader followed the enemy 
in his retreat towards Guadalaxara, putting every one 
whom he suspected to death. 

General Cruz, who was at the head of a division of the 
royal forces, attacked and defeated the rebels at Zamora, 
in the tieri^a caliente, and recaptured the city of Yalladolid. 
This general, pursuing the same policy as Calleja, treated 
the inhabitants with great cruelty. The insurgent army 
halted near Guadalaxara and prepared to defend their posi- 
tion; several large pieces of artillery were brought from 
San Bias, on the Pacific, and intrenchments were thrown 
up at the bridge of Calderon, thirty miles east of the city. 

Hidalgo had lost, in his late reverses, some thirty 
thousand men ; many of whom had deserted their chief 
when the tide of war set against him. He was, however, 
still able to muster eighty thousand ti'oops; who, having 
learned prudence in their recent disasters, were anxious to 
atone for their errors, by submitting themselves to the in- 
structions of their ofiicers. Their leader aroused their 
enthusiasm by frequent harangues, — appealing to their 
patriotism, and recalling the injuries they had received 
from the proud Spaniards, he besought them to resist to 
the last moment. 

Calleja, marching with deliberation, did not reach the 
vicinity of the rebel lines until the middle of winter. 

On the 17th of Januar}'", 1811, the hostile armies once 
more encountered each other. Hidalgo's position was a 

* Memoirs of the Mexican Revolution. 



CAPTURE OF THE REBEL CHIEFS. 8i 

strong one, and his force infinitely superior to his rival's in 
numbers, but sadly deficient in arms. The signal for the 
battle was no sooner given, than the rebels, rushing with 
irresistible fury upon their foes, swept them from their 
path. They broke the columns of the Spaniards, and 
drove them back upon their reserve. The insurgents, 
elated with their success and forgetful of discipline, pushed 
forward in a disorderly manner. Seizing the favorable 
moment, Calleja brought up his reserve; which, charging 
vigorously, decided the contest. The panic stricken 
Mexicans threw down their arms, and fled ingloriously. 
In the rout which ensued, vast numbers of them were 
slain ; no quarter was given ; every prisoner taken being 
instantly put to death. All persons who had extended the 
least encouragement to the enemy, were disposed of in a 
summary manner ; and the tragic scenes of Guanajuato 
were repeated at Guadalaxara. 

Hidalgo and Allende, accompanied by their principal 
officers, took the road toward the eastern internal pro- 
vinces, with the intention of crossing the Rio Grande, and 
there reorganizing the scattered army. They were closely 
pursued by Calleja, and a body of troops stationed at 
Altamira; the commandant of the western internal pro- 
vinces also sending a party against them, under Colonel 
Ochoa. 

Thus beset upon all sides, the rebel chiefs might never- 
theless have escaped, had not one of their number betrayed 
them. The fugitives had reached Acatita de Bajan, near 
Saltillo, when Captain Bustamente, an officer of Hidalgo's 
staff", delivered them into the hands of the enemy. On the 
21st of March, they were surrounded; and after an obsti- 
nate resistance, during which fifty of their companions 
were slain, the party were captured and taken to Chihua- 
hua, and confined in the Jesuits' college of that city. 
They remained in prison for some months ; were finally 
tried for treason and heresy, and condemned to suffer death. 



86 DEATH OF HIDALGO. 

Don Ignacio Allende, the second officer in the rebel 
forces, was executed on the 20th of June, in the court-yard 
of the college. Hidalgo, after having been degraded from 
the priesthood, was put to death on the 27th of July, 1811; 
supplicating heaven, in his last moments, to aid his coun- 
trymen in their struggle for independence. 

Such vi^as the catastrophe of the brief but eventful 
career of the curate of Dolores; a man who possessed 
both virtue and ability, but lacking the essentials that 
make up the character of a successful commander. — He 
wanted firmness, judgment, and presence of mind; without 
which no one ever controlled the tumultuous elements of 
a revolution. 



BOOK III . 



CHAPTER I. 

Defeat of Rayon at Zitaquaro — Organization of the Patriot Junta — • 
The Rebels adopt the Guerilla Mode of Warfare — The Character 
of these Troops — Padre Morelos — The Action of Quatla Amilpas 
— Capture of Oaxaca — The Siege of the Castle at Acapulco — 
The Guerilla Chiefs: Victoria, Teran, Cos, and Ossourno. 

After the fall of Hidalgo, the command of his broken 
and dispersed army was assumed by general Rayon, who 
was still able to muster forty thousand men. This general 
established his head-quarters at Zitaquaro, and endeavored 
to open negotiation with the enemy. Calleja, however, 
refused to hold any communication with the insurgents, 
while in arms against the government. 

Rayon, who had been educated as a lawyer, and was 
a person of superior abilities, formed a kind of junta at 
Zitaquaro, — which was composed of the most prominent 
leaders of his party. Assisted by these individuals, he 
used every means to elevate the courage of his troops, 
and to reduce them to a proper state of discipline. The 
royalist leader scarcely gave him time for this ; but marching 
rapidly against him, he attacked the town, and after an 
engagement of three hours, compelled the rebels to evacuate 
the place. Rayon's army soon fell to pieces. The most 
active among the partisans fled to Zultepic, where they 

C87) 



88 GUERILLA WARFARE. 

continued to meet in council as the supreme authority of 
their constituents. 

By a decree of the vice-regal government, the town of 
Zitaquaro was razed to the ground — the movables of the 
inhabitants confiscated — and they, themselves, driven forth, 
houseless wanderers upon the plains.* These severities, 
although they frightened the more timid among the mal- 
contents into submission, did not affect all in this manner ; 
but rather excited the passions of the people than subdued 
them. The junta issued a manifesto denouncing the bar- 
barity of the government, and calling upon the oppressed 
to renew their struggles for independence. Many of the 
officers, who had escaped from the disastrous battle of the 
bridge of Calderon, retired to the remoter sections of 
country, and there levied considerable bodies of troops. 
These bands rendered themselves terrible to the enemy, 
and carried on a successful guerrilla warfare, characterized 
by great cruelty. 

The flames of civil war, instead of being confined to 
one province, now spread rapidly throughout the country, 
in spite of the victories of Calleja, the decrees of the 
viceroy, or the more dreaded anathemas of tlie Church. 
It is difficult to subdue a people determined to be free : 

" For freedom's battle, once begun, 
Bequeathed by bleeding sire to son, 
Though baffled oft, is ever won." 

The guerilla chiefs, undaunted by the reverses their cause 
had sustained, did not fear to encounter the enemy when 
an opportunity presented itself. Their line of operations 
extended from Vera Cruz, on the Gulf, to the provinces 
on the Pacific, and as far north as Zacatecas and San 
ILiuis Potosi. The viceroy, unable to raise a sufficient 
•number of troops to put down the revolt — or, perhaps, 
lunwilling to trust the natives with arms, found it neces- 

* Robinson's Memoirs. 



PADRE MORELOS. 89 

sary to call upon the home government for the requisite 
reinforcements. The Cadiz regency, in compliance with 
the demand, sent a considerable number of men to Mexico, 
in November, 1811. These unfortunate soldiers soon fell 
victims to the climate, so fatal along the coasts, or perished 
in obscure and inglorious conflicts with the rebels. Such 
indeed was the success of the guerillas, that the royalists 
were at last compelled to seek shelter in the large towns, 
not daring to leave their walls unless in large bodies. 

This desultory mode of warfare, however, was not 
calculated to advance the cause of Mexican freedom ; 
the insurgents were prevented, from the scattered position 
of their forces, from executing a combined movement 
against the strongholds of their adversaries. Another 
reason existed which rendered the "liberals" less dan- 
gerous : this was the disunion which pervaded their ranks, 
caused by the jealousy of the different rival chiefs, who 
acting independently of each other, scorned to acknowledge 
any superior. There was, in consequence, a want of unity 
of action, without which no cause can prosper. The 
guerillas were also destitute of artillery and firearms, and 
totally ignorant of the art of war. In fighting, they made 
but one charge ; if repulsed, they retired in disarray, and 
neither threats nor promises could arrest their retreat. — 
If they succeeded in breaking the enemy's line, they 
generally gained the victory, and signalized their triumph 
by putting their prisoners to death — sometimes with horrid 
tortures ! Nine-tenths of the guerillas were mounted, and 
were the best horsemen in Mexico : they were armed with 
the sword, lance, and lasso ; the latter, a most formidable 
weapon in the hands of a Mexican accustomed to its use. 

In this condition of the affairs of the liberal party, a 
new leader sprang up, and offered himself to head their 
armies and control their destinies : this was Jose Maria 
Morelos, a priest, who had been the spiritual guide of one 
of the most important districts near the city of Acapulco, 



90 BATTLE OF QUATLA AMILPAS. 

on the Pacific Ocean. Morelos, like his predecessor 
Hidalgo, had been reared in the bosom of the church, and 
had ministered at the altar until he reached the meridian 
of life, when moved by the sufferings of his countrymen, 
or ambitious of renown, he deserted the peaceful calling 
of a rural pastor, for the pride of war and the bloody 
trophies of the battle-field. 

He commenced his career of arms by mustering a 
few followers in the province of Valladolid ; and formally 
announcing his adherence to the liberal party. His reputa- 
tion rapidly increased, and he was soon able to bring 
seven thousand men against the enemy. His troops were 
well clothed, armed, and disciplined, when compared with 
those under Hidalgo, and, of course, more formidable 
than an equal number of the disorderly guerillas. 

With this small but efiUcient army, Morelos attacked 
and worsted the royalists upon several occasions. The 
courage of his men rose with each success ; and he soon 
felt strong enough to encounter the dreaded Calleja 
himself. He now took possession of Quatla Amilpas, a 
town of some importance, which he fortified, intending to 
make it the base of his operations. The viceroy dispatched 
Calleja against him, and Morelos, being unable to procure 
a suflficient supply of food, was forced to retreat in haste. 
Calleja pursued the insurgents, falling upon their rear and 
harassing them during the march. All who fell into the 
hands of the enemy were slain on the spot, so that for 
a distance of seven leagues the ground was strewn with 
the dead bodies of the rebels.* The people of the town 
were severely punished by the royalist leader, for allowing 
Morelos to enter their walls, although they were incapable 
of resistance had he attempted to take it by force. 

The loss sustained by the rebel chief was scarcely felt, 
his ranks filling up rapidly with recruits from all parts, 

• It is said five thousand men perished daring this disastrous retreat. 



GUERILLA CHIEFS. 91 

who flocked to his standard in crowds. He was, in a 
short time, again able to take the field ; and being opposed 
by a force under general Fuentes, he defeated that com- 
mander in an action which took place at Textla. Following 
up his victory, he marched against every important city 
in the southern and western provinces ; — his success was 
unprecedented, the people receiving him with open arms 
as the champion of liberty. Morelos sent a portion of his 
army into the rich mining country of Oaxaca. The inhab- 
itants of the towns, and of the opulent city of Oaxaca 
itself, hailed the insurgents as brothers and opened their 
gates to receive them. The booty seized at Oaxaca was 
very valuable, consisting of one thousand ceroons of cochi- 
neal and two millions of dollars ! These immense resources 
were, however, divided among the troops, and squandered 
in dissipation, when they should have been appropriated 
for the furtherance of the cause of freedom. The next en- 
terprise undertaken by the patriots — as they now desig- 
nated themselves — was the reduction of the strong castle 
of San Carlos, which defended the city and harbor of Aca- 
pulco on the Pacific Ocean. This was the most unfortunate 
military movement which had been made during the cam- 
paign, as the fortress of San Carlos was capable of resisting 
a much more formidable force than could be brought against 
it by the rebel leader, destitute, as he was, of cannon, and 
ignorant of the science of engineering. There was but one 
way, by which it could be reduced, that was by cutting off 
the supplies of the garrison, and starving them out. More- 
los, therefore, posted his troops upon all sides of the castle, 
and patiently awaited the issue of the siege, which was 
remarkable for perseverance rather than energy. 

In the meanwhile, Don Guadaloupe Victoria — a name 
famous in the revolutionary annals of Mexico — held pos- 
session of the country lying between Vera Cruz and Jalapa, 
defying the attempts of the viceroy to dislodge him from 
his position among the mountains. Don Manuel Mier y 



92 DEPARTURE OF CALLEJA. 

Teran, a youthful, but noble and cliivalric Creole, com- 
manded a large guerilla party in the country about Puebla 
de los Angeles. Ossourno, another patriot chief, swept over 
the valley of Mexico, carrying his depredations even to the 
very gates of the capital. While Rayon, Padre Cos, and 
others, infested the provinces of Zacatecas, Guanajuato, 
Valladolid, and Guadalaxara, spreading terror throughout 
the land, and emulating the enemy in converting it into 
one great field of blood : for the work of death never 
ceased, while a victim remained to be sacrificed. 

The government sustained a severe loss, amid all of 
these troubles, by the absence of general Calleja, who had 
retired to Spain, where he was received, by the authorities, 
with every demonstration of respect. The cruelties he had 
practiced were too much in unison with the policy of Spain 
to meet with the disapprobation of her rulers. 



CHAPTER II. 

The Invasion of Texas by Americans — Capture and Siege of Goliad — 
Battle of San Antonio — Defeat of Salcedo — Massacre of Spanish 
Officers — Defeat of Elisondo — Advance of Arredondo — General 
Toledo assumes the Command — Treachery of the Mexicans and 
Defeat of the Americans and Indians — Retreat from Bexar — Cap- 
ture and Fate of the Fugitives. 

While Morelos and his compatriots were prosecuting the 
war in the south, a powerful diversion in their favor was 
set on foot in the north, and came from a source as un- 
expected as it was alarming. In the autumn of the year 
1812, Lieutenant Magee, of the United States' Army, was 
dispatched to the Sabine river, with a small force, for 
the purpose of apprehending certain parties of outlaws, 
who had established themselves in that country, and who 
were engaged in robbing the caravans, which were often 
passing between the internal provinces of Mexico and Lou- 
isiana. Magee, who was an active and efficient officer, 
soon dispersed the plunderers and broke up their haunts. 
But his communication with them was productive of sin- 
gular consequences. 

There seems to have existed a mania in the American 
people in regard to the conquest of Mexico, which has 
shown itself, on several occasions, ever since the occupation 
of Louisiana. Whether this feeling has been engendered by 
the weakness and distracted condition of that country, or by 
the vast treasures of gold and silver which abound there, 
it is impossible to say ; but, that a strong desire to con- 
quer Mexico does exist, the history of the last thirty years 
proves beyond a doubt. Perhaps, the success of Cortes 

(93) 



94 SIEGE OF THE GOLIAD. 

and his cavaliers may have had some influence in firing 
the imaginations of the rash adventurers, who, from time to 
time, have invaded Mexico in the hope of achieving fame 
or inexhaustible wealth. Whatever the cause may be; — 
Lieutenant Magee, after he had broken up the brigands 
who had infested the frontiers of Louisiana, found himself 
infected with an irresistible desire to march into Mexico. 
He succceeded in enlisting the outlaws in his enterprise; 
and, resigning his commission, proceeded to New Orleans 
for the double purpose of obtaining supplies and recruits. 
While here, he encountered Don Jose Bernardo Guitierez, 
a Mexican refugee, w^ho had been concerned in Hidalgo's 
rebellion. This personage eagerly accepted the invitation 
proffered him to join the expedition. 

Entering the province of Texas, the adventurers erected 
their standard on the Trinity river, and invited the Mexicans 
who were opposed to the government to enroll themselves 
in their ranks. In the hope of conciliating the people of 
the country, Don Bernardo Guitierez was appointed to the 
nominal post of commander-in-chief. Their first demon- 
stration was upon the town of Nacogdoches, sixty miles 
w^est of the Sabine, — the stream wdiich divides Louisiana 
from Texas. The place yielded without a blow ; the in- 
habitants furnishing them with provisions, and many of them 
enlisting in the enterprise. Magee soon found himself at 
the head of five hundred men, three hundred of whom 
were Americans. In the latter part of the autumn he took 
up the line of march for the west; and, advancing to the 
river San Antonio, he seized the fortress of Goliad, which 
commanded the town and mission of La Bahia del Espiritu 
Santo. General Salcedo, the commandant of the province, 
marched against the adventurers early in the winter, and 
besieged the fort with an army of fifteen hundred men. 
The siege continued during the winter — its monotony was 
varied by frequent encounters, in which the Spaniards were 
usually the greatest sufferers, the American riflemen using 



MASSACRE OF MEXICAN OFFICERS. 95 

their deadly weapons with their accustomed skill. Salcedo, 
after spending some months in the effort to recapture the fort, 
retired in the spring of 1813, leaving the country exposed to 
the enemy. In the meantime, the leader of the expedition, 
Magee, died of consumption, and the command was given 
to Colonel Kemper, an energetic and popular officer. 

The adventurers, elated with their success, now resolved 
to attack the town of San Antonio de Bexar, the capital of 
Texas. Marching up through the wilderness lying between 
the two places, they met with no opposition until they had 
approached within six miles of the town, when they encoun- 
tered General Salcedo with a force of twelve hundred men, 
which w^ere drawn up across their path. The Spaniards 
were supported by six pieces of cannon, which were posted 
in the road, and flanked by their infantry. Salcedo opened 
a fire upon the advancing foe, as they drew near, which w^as 
returned with deadly effect. Colonel Kemper dividing his 
men into three columns — attacked the centre and both 
wings of the enemy at the same moment. They recoiled at 
the sudden shock ; and, falling into confusion, they fled, 
leaving many of their number lying upon the field. The 
loss, on the part of the adventurers, was very small ; while 
that of the Spaniards was considerable. The Spanish officers 
surrendered, under a guarantee of good treatment; and the 
town of San Antonio de Bexar opened its gates to the vic- 
tors. Guitierez was not satisfied with the lenity shown to 
the captured officers, and supported by the Mexicans in the 
camp, he inhumanly put seventeen of their number to death, 
in defiance of the menaces or prayers of the Americans, 
who used every means in their power to prevent the perfi- 
dious deed. Colonel Kemper and captains Ross and Lock- 
ett, horror-struck at this infamous breach of faith — for they 
had pledged themselves for the safety of the unfortunate 
men, — immediately resigned their commands, and together 
with a portion of their followers, returned to the United 
States. Their loss was scarcely felt by those who remained, 



96 ■ GENERAL TOLEDO. 

their companies rapidly filling up with youthful adventurers 
from the " States," who were eager to realize their dreams 
of southern conquest. 

After the departure of Kemper, Colonel Perry was ap- 
pointed leader of the forces, by unanimous consent. The 
Mexicans, who now numbered about seven hundred, were 
formed into a division by themselves, under the command of 
one Manchaco, an energetic but treacherous native of the 
province. Two hundred American Indians had also joined 
the fortunes of the adventurers, and proved brave and valua- 
ble auxiliaries in the contests which followed. 

The government of Mexico, when informed of the defeat 
of Salcedo, dispatched General Elisondo with an army of 
fifteen hundred regular troops, supported by a considerable 
number of Rancheros, from the country of the Rio Grande, to 
the scene of war. Elisondo advanced to within a short dis- 
tance of Bexar, and pitched his camp. In the morning, 
about the break of day, as his troops were engaged in their 
customary devotions, they were suddenly attacked by their 
wakeful adversaries, and, after a brief struggle put to rout, 
with the loss of four hundred men, killed and wounded. 
The enemy were dispersed ; their general making a narrow 
escape with a few of his followers. This victory raised the 
hopes of the patriots throughout the land, and warned the 
viceroy to redouble his efforts to quell the spirit of revolt 
ere it reached the adjacent provinces. With all his exer- 
tions, distracted as he was by the difficulties that beset 
him on all sides, he was unable to send more than two 
thousand troops to the north. These were, however, picked 
men — veterans who had shared in many a desperate fight ; 
and were commanded by General Joaquin de Arredondo, an 
intelligent and able soldier, who was, nevertheless, cruel and 
unprincipled when it served his purpose. 

The advance of Arredondo was looked for calmly by the 
army of Bexar, which had recently received a valuable ac- 
quisition to their cause, in the person of General Toledo, a 



RETREAT OF THE ADVENTURERS. 97 

Creole of distinguished family and reputation, who had been 
a member of the Cortes of Cadiz. Toledo was solicited to 
take the command, and accepted it, to the joy of the Ameri- 
cans, and the dissatisfaction of the Mexicans, under Man- 
chaco, who regarded his elevation with envy and distrust. 

As the enemy approached, Toledo drew up his forces,, 
each division under its own leader, and waited for the Span- 
iards to commence the battle. Arredondo sent forward a 
strong party to reconnoitre, which was immediately attacked 
by Manchaco, against the orders of Toledo. The enemy- 
retreated, followed by the Mexican division, which was soon 
decoyed into an ambush. The other divisions were ordered 
up to their support, and the battle became general. At 
this crisis, Manchaco drew off his men and retired, leav- 
ing four hundred Americans and their two hundred Indian, 
allies to bear the brunt of the fight. This they did valiantly; 
pouring a deadly stream of fire into the ranks of the foe,, 
which told fearfully. The conflict continued until the am- 
munition of the adventurers being exhausted, they were 
reluctantly compelled to retreat, on the evening of the iStli 
of August, the day upon which the engagement took place. 
Arredondo kept possession of the field : having suffered too 
severely to follow up his advantage. As the seven hundred 
Mexicans had deserted in the beginning of the battle, the 
forces under Toledo had been obliged to contend with more 
than three times their own number. The enemy lost, during 
the action, six hundred of their best troops ; — the adven- 
turers leaving one hundred of their comrades upon the field. 
No prisoners were taken by either party. 

Manchaco, unable to bear the reproaches heaped upon 
him — or, acting upon a concerted plan — went over to the 
Spaniards with such information relative to the condition of 
Toledo's force, as precluded the possibility of attei^pting to 
continue the war. The Americans, therefore, determined to 
return home, and began their march towards the east, cov- 
ered with wounds, if not wuth spoils. A portion of them 



98 FATE OF THE PRISONERS. 

escaped under Perry, across the frontier. Some of them de- 
laying on the route, were overtaken and captured by the 
enemy on the Trinity, and carried to Mexico; whence they 
were deported to Manilla, Malaga, and the Spanish presidio'' s 
iOn the coast of Africa ; where, loaded with chains, they 
terminated their wretched existence. Such was the melan- 
<;holy issue of this enterprise. Had Toledo defeated the 
royalists, and formed a junction with the patriots of the 
.south, as he anticipated, the catastrophe would, doubtless, 
ihave been very different. 



CHAPTER III. 

Return of Calleja as Viceroy — Progress of the Civil War — The Pa- 
triot Junta assembled at Azpatzingan — Manifesto of the Rebels — 
Folly and Treachery of the Junta — The Intrigues of Calleja — The 
Siege of Valladolid — The Retreat of Morelos — Battle of Puruaran 
— Augustin Iturbide — Rout of the Insurgents — Death of Matarao- 
ros — March to Tehuacan — Execution of Morelos. 

Don Felix Maria Calleja returned from Spain in 1813, 
covered with honors — having been appointed Viceroy of 
Mexico, with the title of Conde de Calderon, as a reward for 
the services he had rendered the government, by destroying 
the rebel army under Hidalgo. This able but sanguinary 
soldier, soon found occasion to use the talents he was gifted 
with, in the exercise of his delegated power. The viceroy- 
alty was alive with the enemies of the government, who 
seemed sternly bent upon its destruction, and reckless of the 
means by which they sought to accomplish their purpose. 
Toledo's defeat, although it carried with it the prestige of 
future victories, had been dearly purchased; and was, after 
all, but the removal of one head from the hydra of rebel- 
lion, whose deadly folds encompassed the land. 

The guerillas desolated and plundered the country with 
impunity : murdering every European Spaniard, or partisan 
of the royalists, who was so unfortunate as to become their 
prisoner. The government party were equally guilty of the 
same revolting crimes ; their route could be traced by the 
mangled remains of thousands of their adversaries, whose 
bodies were suspended upon trees or lay festering in the 
public roads. Upon all sides was to be seen the sad specta- 
cle of the smouldering ruins of villages, farms, and haciendas, 

C99^ 



100 MOKELOS TAKES ACAPULCO. 

their once prosperous inhabitants driven forth, beggars and 
outcasts upon the earth.* Many, who at night were in the 
enjoyment of all that makes life desirable, were in the morn- 
ing bereft of every comfort, friends, riches, and home. 
Women were openly violated ; and the white haired senior 
and tender infant fell together, under the swords of the bru- 
tal soldiery.f In many provinces the fields were left untilled, 
and the horrors of famine, followed by disease, added to the 
sufferings of the already desperate people, and threatened to 
depopulate the fairest portion of the country. 

The Viceroy, shut up in the city of Mexico, w^hence he 
could not stir without a powerful escort, found it impossible 
to communicate wdth the leaders of the regular forces. His 
correspondence with the Spanish government was interrupted, 
and his supplies of arms and munitions from abroad, were 
either captured by the rebels or detained for months in the 
harbor of Vera Cruz. The capital itself was not free from 
the spirit of insubordination ; evidences of a disposition to 
exult in the success of the insurgents alarmed the authorities 
and caused the viceroy to tremble for his personal safety. 
A proclamation was issued, making it criminal for more than 
three persons to meet together, unless they were members of 
the same family, or resided in the same house ; while the 
garrison of the city was reinforced by strong detachments 
from the Spanish troops. These precautions proved effectual ; 
the people of the capital were over-awed, and constrained 
to submit, when to resist would have been useless as well as 
dangerous. 

Morelos, after a protracted siege of fifteen months, cap- 
tured the strong castle of San Carlos, which defended Aca- 
pulco ; the government being unable, during that period, to 
send a sino^le battalion to the relief of the besieged. The 
insurgent chief, instead of improving the advantages his 
position gave him, by opening the ports on the Pacific, and 

* Robinson's Mem. f Zavala's Hist. Rev. Nuev. Espagn. 



MANIFESTO OF THE REBELS. 1 01 

obtaining by this means a supply of arms and munitions of 
war, which he much needed, resolved to march upon the city 
of Mexico. He was now master of the rich provinces of 
Valladolid, Oaxaca, and a portion of Guadalaxara, three- 
fifths of the population of which were devoted to his cause, 
and still echoed the cry " death to the Gachupin." By 
fortifying the passes of the mountains of the Misteca, he 
could have easily cut off all communication between the val- 
ley of Anahuac and the Pacific shore. An army of ten times 
the strength of the rebel force, would have found it difiicult 
to surmount the impediments which could be thrown in their 
way, during their passage through the narrow gorges of the 
Sierra Madre. 

Devoted to the sacred cause of liberty, Morelos, whose 
influence was all-powerful with his party, felt no disposition 
to assume the position of a dictator. He therefore proposed 
the creation of a legislative body, composed of deputies 
from the several provinces which had pronounced in favor of 
the liberal principles. The proposition was accepted ; and 
the junta consisting of forty members, assembled at Azpat- 
zingan, in the department of Valladolid. It was organized 
by the appointment of Don Jose Maria Liceaga, a distin- 
guished patriot, as president. A constitution was drawn up, 
approved by the junta, and sworn to by the insurgents, with 
all the solemnity usual upon such occasions. The Assembly 
then issued a manifesto declaring their principles, and the 
causes which had driven them to take up arms against the 
viceroy.* This instrument commences by declaring that the 
sovereignty of Mexico is inherent in the mass of the nation; 
that Spain and Mexico are portions of the same kingdom — 
subject to the same monarch, and are equally independent of 
each other; that the loyal people of America have more 
right to convoke a cortes of the nation than the disloyal 
people of Spain ; that the European Spaniards have no right 

* Robinson's Memoirs. 



102 MANIFESTO OF THE REBELS. 

to assume the government over these countries, during the 
absence of the king from the Peninsula ; that all laws and 
authority emanating from the Cortes of Spain are null and 
void ; that it is just and right for the Mexicans to resist the 
government, and a proof of their patriotism and loyalty to 
the king. The manifesto, moreover, declares, that since the 
legitimate sovereign of Spain has been deposed, the Mexicans 
have a right to demand a guarantee for their security, by 
holding their country for the king, unmolested by the Span- 
iards. Recognizing the above principles, the junta made 
the following just demands : — That the viceroy surrender the 
command of the army to a congress, representing Ferdinand 
VII, which would be independent of Spain ; that the Euro- 
peans should be protected — retaining their offices, honors, 
privileges, and a part of their revenues. The document also 
proposed, that an act of oblivion should be passed, and that 
the inhabitants of Mexico should constitute a nation who 
were to be the subjects of Ferdinand, independent of the 
Spanish government ; that the Mexicans would assist the 
people of Spain, w^ho were engaged in a war with the 
enemy — in testimony of their fraternity with them in the 
objects to be attained. The Junta further declared, that all 
Europeans who desired to leave the country, would be pro- 
vided with passports and safe-conducts to any part of the 
world. 

If these propositions were refused, it was proposed to 
submit the following conditions to the Viceroy for his accept- 
ance : — First, That a war between brethren and fellow- 
subjects, ought not to be more cruel than a foreign war ; 
that both parties recognize Ferdinand VII as their sovereign ; 
and that the rights of nations, inviolate even among infidel 
and savage tribes, should be more sacred among those who 
profess the same creed, and are subject to the same sove- 
reign and laws ; that it is opposed to the spirit of Christianity 
to be impelled by hatred, malice, or the passion of revenge ; 
and as the sword, and not the arguments dictated by equity 



MANIFESTO OF THE REBELS. 103 

and reason, are to decide the contest, it should be carried 
on in such a manner as to be the least shocking to humanity. 
It was further proposed, " That prisoners of war be not 
treated as criminals guilty of high treason ; that no one be 
sentenced to die for this cause, but the prisoners be kept as 
hostages or for the purpose of exchange ; not loaded with 
chains or imprisoned, but confined in places where they can 
do no injury ; that all prisoners should be treated according 
to their rank ; that the law of war does not allow the spil- 
ling of blood, except in cases of actual combat; therefore, 
no one should be slain after he surrenders, or has thrown 
down his arms, and is flying from the field ; that it is against 
the laws of war and nature, to enter defenceless towns, and 
to assign the people thereof by tenths and fifths to be put to 
death, confounding the innocent with the guilty ; — but that 
the inhabitants of such places, through which either party 
shall pass, be unmolested. It is unwarrantable to connect 
the present war with religion, as was attempted in the begin- 
ning ; the ecclesiastics should confine their ministry within 
their own jurisdiction ; nor should the ecclesiastical tribunals 
(the inquisition) interfere in a matter concerning the state 
alone. If the clergy continue to act as heretofore, they will 
certainly expose their dignity, censures, and decrees, to the 
scorn, derision, and contempt of the people ; who in general 
are anxiously washing the success of the (patriots) country. 
Should the churchmen be unrestrained, the Junta declares 
itself not to be responsible for the effects arising from the 
indignation of the people ; at the same time proclaiming their 
respect and veneration for them, in all matters within their 
jurisdiction. The manifesto concludes, by urging its pub- 
lication in the public journal of the capital, that the people 
may declare their will ; which should be the guide of the 
Junta in its operations. Should the Viceroy refuse to recog- 
nize the above propositions, the " lex talionis " was to be 
put in force against his party. 

The manifesto of the patriots was treated with scorn by 



104 THE INTKIGUES OF CALLEJA. 

the Viceroy, and its humane propositions rejected, upon the 
absurd plea of its being derogatory to the Spanish character 
to negotiate with rebels in arms against the government. 
The old system of carrying on the war was therefore contin- 
ued : the last hope of reconciliation being destroyed by the 
refusal of the viceroy to soften the horrors of the contest, by 
accepting the terms offered by the Junta of Azpatzingan. 

Morelos, eager to resume his operations against the 
enemy, discovered when too late, the folly he had been 
guilty of in surrendering his authority into the hands of the 
Mexican Junta : the members of which, ignorant and preju- 
diced, defeated his measures and forced him to listless inac- 
tivity, at a crisis when energy and perseverance would have 
secured the triumph of the patriot arms. If an outline of a 
campaign was drawn up by the rebel chief or his officers, it 
was openly discussed by the representatives of the people, 
and either rendered abortive by delay or communicated 
to the Viceroy. The Junta, like all such assemblies, was 
divided into several factions, each of which was struggling 
for the mastery ; and a spirit of jealousy and discord reigned 
in every heart, to the great detriment and ruin of the cause. 
The able Calleja, aware of this fact, turned it to his own 
advantage by corrupting the faith, and suborning to his 
mterests several members of the legislative body. The 
treason was discovered by some dispatches, which had been 
fortunately intercepted, and the names of many distinguished 
individuals revealed, who had accepted the bribes and 
promises of the enemy. The slight bonds which had united 
the civil and military authorities were completely destroyed 
by this event ; all unity of action between them ceased, and 
thenceforth the affairs of the patriots began to decline rapid- 
ly. Their wily adversary had gained his point by sowing 
the seeds of disunion among his foes ; like the ancient 
Greek he knew the value of the " fox's skin when the 
lion's hide fell short." 

In the latter part of 1813, Morelos once more took tlie 



BATTLE OF PURUARAN. 105 

field, and opened the campaign by marching upon the city of 
Valladolid, which had been retaken by the enemy, and 
strongly fortified. Situated on the western declivity of the 
great Cordillera of Anahuac, this city is built upon an eleva- 
tion of 6400 feet above the level of tlie sea ; and although 
the climate is delightfully mild, during the great part of 
the year, yet snow has been seen to fall in its streets in 
seasons of uncommon severity. The winter had already 
begun when Morelos arrived before Valladolid ; and as his 
troops were composed of natives of the tierra caliente they 
soon experienced the change from the burning plains of 
the south to the cold regions of the mountains. Accus- 
tomed from infancy to a climate where eternal summer 
reigned, the effeminate children of the plains were unable 
to bear the rude blasts of the north wind, which swept 
through their camp and chilled their half naked bodies. 
The insurgent leader, dispirited by the murmurs of his 
discontented men, made a few feeble attempts upon the town, 
which were repulsed with loss. Finding it impossible to 
make an impression upon the city, Morelos raised the siege 
and retreated towards the south with his now demoralized 
army. He was pursued by a division of Llano's brigade, 
commanded by Augustin Iturbide. The rear-guard of the 
fugitives, under Matamoros, Morelos' second in command, 
was overtaken at the hacienda of Puruaran, and a desperate 
conflict followed. The enemy charged with great fury 
upon the patriots, who defended themselves with energy 
inspired by hatred and revenge. Iturbide was known to 
have never spared a prisoner, and was, in consequence, 
detested by the rebels, who regarded him with horror ; 
but notwithstanding the efforts of Matamoros, who displayed 
great personal valor and military talent, the insurgent col- 
umns were broken — vast numbers slain — the rest over- 
powered, and taken prisoners on the spot. 

This was the greatest victory the enemy had achieved 
since the affair at the Bridge of Calderon, and was almost as 



106 FERDINAND VII. 

fatal to the patriot cause. The slaughter was very great 
on both sides ; the number of prisoners captured were nine 
hundred, among whom was the brave Matamoros. This 
individual had also been a priest, and had endeared him- 
self to his general by his fidelity and superior talents. 
Morelos immediately offered several Spanish officers and 
men in exchange for his lieutenant, but without success. 
He was far too dangerous a character to be spared, and 
in defiance of the menaces of the insurgent leader, this 
officer, after being degraded from the priesthood, was put 
to death, with twenty-five of his fellow-prisoners. 

This was the first serious reverse which had befallen 
the rebels for some time, and filled them with gloomy 
apprehensions for the future, while it animated the enemy 
and strengthened their hands. Morelos retired, with the 
remains of his army, beyond the reach of the victorious 
royalists ; and endeavored to recruit his shattered battalions, 
and raise the drooping courage of his men. The disas- 
trous defeat at Puruaran had taught him caution, and he 
never allowed himself to be drawn into a general engage- 
ment afterwards ; but confined his efforts to fighting the 
enemy in detail, and cutting off his supplies. The Mexi- 
can Junta held its meetings at Ario : where protected by 
the army, they continued to annoy the leaders of their 
party by their absurd and foolish interference in matters 
of which they were entirely ignorant. 

Bonaparte restored the crown to Ferdinand VII., in 
1813, by the treaty of Valence, and in March 1814, the 
King returned to Spain. His misfortunes had neither made 
him a better nor a wiser man. He was unfitted in every 
way to govern the nations fate had assigned him. A 
sensualist and an imbecile, he was as depraved in morals 
as he was vacant in mind. In his luxurious palace of 
Aranjuez, surrounded by the voluptuous daughters of An- 
dalusia, he was forgetful of the wrongs of his people, 
whose sighs were drowned by tlie lascivious strains which 



MARCH TO TEHUACAN. l'©7 

floated through the orange groves of his magnificent abode. 
If the groans of the injured Mexicans reached his ear, recall- 
ing to his remembrance their steadfast devotion to his person 
when a stranger sat upon his throne, and he wandered an 
exile from his home, the thought was crushed, at its birth, as 
' an vmwelcome intruder upon the pleasures to which he had 
yielded up his frivolous soul. Scarcely had the descendant 
of the Bourbons resumed the reins of sovereignty, when he 
was surrounded by monks, friars, and inquisitors, whose Goth- 
ic prejudices were in direct opposition to the spirit of the age. 
Yet the weak monarch delivered himself up to their guid- 
ance, and proceeded to administer the government upon a 
system, based upon the infallibility of the Pope, and the 
divine right of kings : an exploded doctrine, which had 
been trampled to the earth by the conquering legions of 
France ; when, scaling the Pyrennees, they demolished the 
strongholds of bigotry and monkish superstition. The de- 
struction of the Inquisition of Spain, by Napoleon, was like 
the fall of the Bastile, an epoch fatal to the cause of tempo- 
ral and spiritual tyrannies. The Spaniards had learned to 
think and act for their country during the absence of their 
king, and many sympathized with the oppressed people of 
Mexico, in their efforts to shake off the chains which held 
them in feudal bondage. But these generous spirits were 
few compared with the mass of the nation, and the Mexicans 
derived no assistance from them. 

During the greater part of the year 1814, Morelos was 
engaged in detached operations against the Viceroy's troops, 
without obtaining any considerable advantage worthy of re- 
cording. In the autumn of 1815, after having experienced 
many disasters and difficulties, the patriot leader resolved to 
abandon the Province of Valladolid, and unite his forces 
with those of some other chief. He accordingly began his 
march towards the town of Tehuacan in the Intendancy of 
Puebla ; where General Teran, a distinguished guerilla, had 
established his head-quarters. His army was impeded in the 



108 EXECUTION OF MORELOS. 

march by the members of the Junta, and crowds of women 
and children — the relatives and friends of his men. The 
road was lined for several miles with trains of wagons and 
pack mules ; all was confusion and disarray, and resembled 
the emigration of a tribe rather than the march of a warlike 
expedition. Morelos, confiding in the superiority of his 
force, was not apprehensive of an attack from the enemy, 
although parties of them were descried hovering upon his 
flank and rear. Accompanied by a small escort of cavalry, 
the rebel general imprudently hastened onward in advance 
of his troops, to a place called Tepecuacuila. The royalists 
being apprised of this through their spies, Morelos was sud- 
denly attacked by a superior force, and after a brief but 
desperate struggle, overpowered and taken prisoner, on the 
5th of November. He was immediately conveyed to the 
capital and incarcerated in the dungeons of the Inquisition. 
Morelos was tried for atheism, materialism, and heresy, by 
the holy office. " One proof of his guilt was, that he was 
the father of two children!* The accused abjured, and was 
absolved in an auto-da-fe which was celebrated with as much 
pomp and magnificence as those in the days of Philip the 
Second." 

Aware that Calleja would put the prisoner to death, the 
Inquisitors contented themselves with degrading him from 
the priesthood ; which was done by the Bishop of Ante-' 
quera. Morelos was then transferred to the secular power, 
taken to San Christobal, twelve miles from Mexico, and shot 
in the back as a traitor, on the 22nd of December, 1815. 
He is said to have died in the most heroic manner. Morelos 
was a superior man and a true patriot. He had fought 
forty-six battles during his career, and was seldom defeated. 

• General Juan N. Almonte is said to have been one of these chil- 
dren : if so his birth is more illustrious than many of his contemporaries. 



U}.; \ 



CHAPTER IV. 

Dispersion of the Rebel Junta by General Teran — Exploits of the 
Guerillas: Victoria, Ossourno, and Guerrero — Expedition against 
Guasacualco — Affair at Playa Vicente — Battle between Topete 
and Teran — Defeat of the Spaniards — Return to Tehuacan — Apo- 
daca appointed Viceroy — Capitulation of Teran — The Character 
of that Chief. 

The death of Morelos proved almost fatal to the cause 
of which he had been so prominent a supporter. He was 
the only chief upon whom the rival leaders of the patriot 
party could have concurred, in electing as their commanding 
general. His untoward fate cast a gloom over the future 
prospects of his compatriots, and added fresh courage to the 
enemies of freedom. 

Don Manuel Mier y Teran had at his disposal about 
fifteen hundred irregular troops, who were under tolerable 
discipline, and devoted to their chief. He had constructed 
a stronghold upon the Cerro Colorado, a lofty height over- 
looking the town of Tehuacan.* Teran had been remarka- 
bly successful in his enterprises against the enemy, and 
enjoyed great popularity among the members of his party. 
The Mexican Junta, which now held its meetings at Tehua- 
can, soon became envious of the power lodged in the hands 
of the military, and evinced a strong disposition to curtail 
their influence. While the different commanders, regarding 
the Junta with contempt, were struggling for the supreme 
authority among themselves, disdaining to obey the legisla- 

* Tehuacan de las Granadas, or Miztica, was a place of peculiar 
sanctity during the reign of the Montezuraas. 

(109) 



110 CONDITION OF THE COUNTRY. 

tive decrees unless they suited their own purposes; Teran's 
popularity aroused the jealousy of the deputies, and they 
combined to deprive him of his command. Discovering 
their treacherous design, he resolved to defeat their ungene- 
rous intentions by dissolving the junta by force. In the latter 
part of December, 1815, the patriot leader, followed by his 
escort, entered the hall occupied by the deputies, and dis- 
persed them at the point of the bayonet. Resistance, under 
the circumstances, was useless ; as Teran's authority was 
backed by the weapons of fifteen hundred devoted followers, 
who would have cut them to pieces had he commanded 
them. The conduct of Teran, however justifiable on his 
part, proved injurious to the cause, by rupturing the only tie 
which bound the insurgent chiefs to each other. Hence- 
forth every leader pursued his own policy, regardless of that 
of his compatriots, and but too often directed to no other 
end than their own selfish aggrandizement. Exercising a 
power, within the range of their several jurisdictions, more 
cruel and arbitrary than that of the hired myrmidons of the 
viceroy ; they prostituted the sacred name of liberty by 
using it as a cloak, under which they committed the most 
wanton outrages upon the lives and property of their suffer- 
ing countrymen. Wlierever the guerillas established them- 
selves, anarchy and disorder reigned unchecked by a single 
law, save that of brutal force. The want of an acknow- 
ledged head, capable of controlling the fierce elements tliat 
composed the rebel party, was one of the principal causes 
of its ruin. The insurgents, ceasing to be governed by a 
common power, rapidly degenerated into mere brigands, 
who rioted in the spoils torn from friend and foe. 

Notwithstanding this unhappy state of affairs, the gueril- 
las annoyed the government upon every opportunity : — 
attacking their convoys, cutting off their supplies, and deso- 
lating the country in the vicinity of the fortified towns in 
possession of the enemy. Calleja, although reinforced by 
several battalions of troops from Spain, was unable to put 



TERAN — VICTORIA — OSSOURNO. Ml 

down a single rebellious province ; if he succeeded in cap- 
turing or dispersing one party another would suddenly 
spring up, as if from the blood of the slain, and surpris- 
ing his veterans while rejoicing over their recent triumph, 
convert it into a defeat. 

Among those who distinguished themselves in this kind 
of irregular warfare was Victoria, who had quartered him- 
self in the province of Vera Cruz, and with a force of 
fifteen hundred men, ravaged the country from one extremity 
of that intendancy to the other. Colonel Ossourno had at 
his disposal a force of two thousand cavalry, and had estab- 
lished himself in the district of Papantla, near the valley 
of Mexico. General Rayon commanded a body of eighteen 
hundred men, in the province of Valladolid, and garrisoned 
the fort of Copero, where he held his head-quarters. Don 
Vicente Guerrero, the brave but unfortunate champion of 
liberty, infested the mountains of the Misteca with a formi- 
dable division, and defied the power of the government to 
disperse his rude, but enthusiastic bands. Teran, Victoria, 
and Ossourno, were cantoned within sixty miles of each 
other, and could have easily united their forces in forty-eight 
hours, and combining, carried on the contest with some 
hope of success ; but the miserable jealousy of the two 
latter prevented any plan of this kind. Teran proposed to 
them to unite with him, and seize upon Tampico, or some 
other port upon the Gulf, by means of which they would be 
enabled to obtain a supply of arms and munitions of war, 
so much needed by all. These commanders, however, 
refused to aid their enterprising companion, who, disgusted 
with their selfishness, resolved to carry out his scheme hirii- 
self. As Teran's force was too weak to capture any mari- 
time town of importance, he determined to cross the prov- 
ince of Oaxaca, and seize upon the port of Guasacualco, 
situated to the southward of Vera Cruz, and that of Tehuan- 
tepic, on the Pacific shore. These ports are nearly opposite 
each other, and, between them, the continent is not more 



112 DISTRESS OF TERAN. 

than a hundred and thirty-five miles in breadth. By taking 
possession of either of these ports^ he anticipated being able 
to obtain the necessary supplies from abroad. The summer 
had already commenced, and there was no time to be lost 
in carrying out his project, as the rainy season was about 
to set in, during which the streams rise above their banks, 
and overflow the low-lands, rendering the march of an 
army impossible. 

Leaving Tehuacan de las Granadas, on the 24th of July, 
1816, Teran began his march at the head of a detachment 
composed of two hundred and forty infantry and sixty cav- 
alry, supported by two small field pieces. His passage 
was undisputed by the enemy, and he succeeded in reach- 
ing Tustepic, half-way between his point of departure and 
destination, without difficulty.. Scarcely had he arrived 
here, when the heavens became black with clouds, and 
torrents of rain descended, which deluged the whole coun- 
try, rendering advance or retreat equally impossible. Con- 
fined to a small village, destitute of provisions, the situa- 
tion of the guerilla was becoming desperate, when the 
people of Tustepic, who were mostly Indians, or persons 
of mixed blood, came to his rescue,, and furnished him 
with rations for his troops. 

The Viceroy, in the meantime, had learned the object 
of the expedition, and had dispatched a body of men to 
defeat his attack upon Guasacualco, and cut off his return 
to Tehuacan. 

Learning the preparations of the enemy by means of 
the Lidians, the rebel chief found himself placed in an 
awkward dilemma. Prevented, by the elements, from prose- 
cuting his plans as he had originally proposed, he was 
compelled to lie inactive while his foes were marching 
against him, ready to capture him when the waters abated. 
Teran had begun to despair, when, to his great relief, he 
learned from a party of Lidians, that at the distance of 
twenty-four miles, there was a village called Amistan, from 



GUERILLAS OCCUPY AMISTAN. 113 

which there was a road to Guasacualco, open even during 
the rainy season. It would be necessary, however, in the 
passage to Araistan, to overcome many obstacles — swamps, 
rivers, and deep ravines were to be crossed, which w^ould 
require no ordinary degree of perseverance and labor. 
The energy of Teran was, however, equal to the emer- 
gency, and he lost no time in making the attempt. With 
the aid of the Indians of Tustepic, he succeeded in sur- 
mounting the impediments which lay in his way, and 
reached Amistan on the 5th of September; ten days being 
consumed in the passage. 

Fifteen miles from this point was the village of Playa 
Vicente, a military post occupied by the enemy. It was 
situated upon the bank of a small river, difficult to pass 
at this time of the year. Having received information that 
there was a considerable quantity of goods stored at the 
village, Teran determined to take possession of the booty 
if possible. He accordingly advanced to the stream, and 
bivouacked opposite the place, on the 7th of September. 
The following day he learned that the garrison of Playa 
had evacuated the village during the night, leaving behind 
them the stores, consisting of cochineal and dry goods, 
which had excited the cupidity of the guerillas.* Their 
commander immediately set his men to constructing rafts 
of logs for the purpose of crossing to the other side. In 
the meantime, a party of some twenty of bis men, impa- 
tient to get hold of the booty, procured a canoe and passed 
the stream. Teran, fearful of the result, if the party w^re 
allowed to range through the village unmolested, followed 
them, accompanied by three of his officers. While engaged 

* Wm. D. Robinson, the author of " Memoirs of the Mexican Revo- 
lution," was with Teran in this expedition. He was captured at 
Playa Vicente, and taken to Vera Cruz, and confined in the dungeons 
of San Juan de Ulloa for some years. He was subsequently carried 
to Spain, and in defiance of the laws of humanity, about to be con- 
signed to perpetual imprisonment, when he fortunately made his escape. 
8 



114 TERAN DEFEATED. 

in taking precautions for the safety of the persons and pro- 
perty of the inhabitants, he was alarmed by the approach of 
the enemy. Forming his men, with their rear upon the 
houses of the village, Teran prepared to defend himself 
resolutely. 

The royalists, commanded by Colonel Ortega, soon ad- 
vanced and opened a fire upon the little party, which was 
returned with effect. The guerillas fought desperately, 
but were soon overpowered, and every one of them killed, 
except their leader and two others, who saved themselves 
by plunging into the river and swimming it, amidst a shower 
of balls. 

Exasperated by his defeat, Teran, the ensuing day, pre- 
pared to cross his whole force, and recover the village. 
On the afternoon of the 9th, as he was about to attempt 
the passage, he was informed that General Topete, with six 
hundred cavalry, and the same number of infantry, was 
within a few leagues of his position, and proposed attack- 
ing him at day-break on the following morning. Fearful, 
if he remained, that he would be forced to fight Ortega 
and Topete at the same time, the insurgent chief, when 
he received this intelligence, broke up his camp, and leav- 
ing the river, marched nine miles into the country, and 
took up a position in some woods. It was now dark; and 
he had scarcely posted his sentinels, when the advanced 
guard of the enemy's cavalry approached. They were 
hailed by Teran's out-posts, who fired upon them. Aston- 
ished at the seeming ubiquity of the guerillas, whom he 
supposed were at the river, Topete determined to await 
the return of daylight to unravel the mystery; and falling 
back a short distance, encamped for the night. 

Teran prepared to make a strong defence, by construct- 
ing a barricade of the trunks of trees, and concealed his 
men by thick bushes placed before them. He masked his 
two pieces of cannon from view in the same manner. A 
few hours before daybreak, the active rebel visited every 



TERAN DEFEATS TOPETE. 115 

man at his post, and obtained from them a promise to hold 
out to the last moment, and to die rather than retreat or 
surrender. 

When the morning dawned, the enemy were seen ad- 
vancing a half a mile distant. Between the two forces a 
narrow, but deep and rapid stream, wound its way, the 
steep banks of which rendered it difficult to cross. When 
Topete's advance, consisting of a strong party of cavalry, 
reached the verge of the creek they halted, uncertain 
whether to continue onward or to remain upon that side. 
The rebels were effectually concealed from their view by 
the luxuriant undergrowth of the woods, and an accurate 
reconnoissance of their position was impossible. After hesi- 
tating about an hour they passed the stream, and cautiously^ 
approached. At this moment Teran, with some thirty of his- 
men, issued from his concealment, and showed himself to- 
the enemy. The ruse succeeded — the cavalry, charging at 
full speed, were decoyed into the ambush. At a given 
signal the guerillas opened a terrible fire from their can- 
non and muskets, and with loud shouts, charged suddenly 
upon the astonished royalists, who, thrown into disorder by 
the unexpected attack, retreated in haste toward the main 
body. In attempting to cross the creek, they crowded upon 
each other, so as to defeat their purpose, and as many of 
them were drowned, or trampled to death, as were slain by 
the guerillas. Teran pursued the flying foe with his whole 
force, and soon had the satisfaction of seeing the main body 
of Topete's force retire with a precipitation as unlooked for 
as it was desired. The officers were unable to rally their 
men, and they fled in the utmost disorder, leaving Teran 
master of the field. The enemy lost, in this action, one 
hundred and twenty killed, a large number wounded, and 
sixty taken prisoners. The guerillas had nine killed, and 
thirteen wounded. 

Learning from his prisoners that the Viceroy was ma- 
king preparations to defend Guasacualco, and had sent two 



116 SAN FRANCISCO BESIEGED. 

Spanish ships of war to that port, the patriot leader resolved 
to retreat to Tehuacan, in Puebla, his former quarters. He 
therefore retraced his steps, and arrived safely at Tehuacan, 
and established himself in his fort on the Cerro Colorado. 

Though singularly successful in his rencounters with the 
King's troops, General Teran was aware of the impossibility 
of effecting any great achievement, unless the patriot com- 
manders would unite their forces, or at least co-operate 
with each other; he therefore renewed his offers of friend- 
ship to Victoria and Ossourno, and proposed that they 
should merge their several commands into one. His ad- 
vances were received coldly, and his proposition rejected 
by both of these chiefs, who had looked upon him with an 
evil eye since his unwarrantable dissolution of the patriot 
.Junta. 

The infamous Calleja, about this time, was superseded 
;by the Spanish Admiral, Juan Ruiz de Apodaca, a personage 
,of a mild, conciliatory disposition, every way different from 
.his predecessor. The new Viceroy determined to signalize 
his accession to power by crushing the rebels, who had 
vexed the land since 1810, at one blow. He began by 
sending an army of four thousand veterans against Teran, 
rightly considering him the most dangerous and enterprising 
of the enemies of the government. The guerilla prepared 
for the coming struggle, undaunted by the superior numbers 
of the advancing foe. He sent the women and children to 
the fort on the Cerro Colorado, and remained with five 
hundred of his most faithful followers, in the town of 
Tehuacan. Having fortified the convent of San Francisco, 
he took possession of it, determined to resist to the last, 
should the enemy attempt to carry the place. This they 
however did not do, as Teran had made such preparations 
for the defence of the convent, that to storm it would have 
been no easy matter. The royalists therefore contented 
themselves with investing the place closely; they surrounded 
the town upon all sides, and cut off all communication 



CAPITULATION OF TERAN. ' 117 

between It and the fortress upon the heights above. No 
supplies were allowed to enter the place, and the besieged 
soon began to suffer for food and water. After some time, 
finding that neither Victoria nor Ossourno intended to march 
to his assistance, Teran conceived it his duty to accept the 
terms offered by the enemy, as the only means of preserving 
the lives of his companions. These conditions were highly 
flattering to Teran, and were such as had been refused more 
than once, to the other patriot leaders, showing the great 
opinion the government entertained of his abilities as a 
partisan commander. He alone, of all the rebel chiefs, was 
conscious of the importance of combination, and was the 
only one who aspired to something more glorious than the 
reduction of a petty fortress or the burning of an enemy's 
hacienda. His activity, courage, and address, peculiarly 
fitted him for a successful leader, in a struggle conducted 
upon such principles as the civil war of Mexico. 

Teran lived to participate in the triumphs of his party, 
and at last to fall a victim to the cause, of which he had 
ever been an ardent and enthusiastic champion. 



BOOK IV. 



CHAPTER I. 

Progress of the Revolution — Success of the Royalists — General 
Victoria's Troops dispersed — He withdraws from the Contest- 
Surrender of Copero — Character of Ossourno and his Lieutenant, 
Gomez Vincente — The famous Guerilla, Jose Antonio Torres — 
His Character and Cruelty toward his own Party — Organization 
of a Revolutionary Committee — Condition of the Patriot Party in 
Mexico at this Period. 

Having rid itself of one of its most active and enter- 
prising opponents by the capitulation of Tehuacan, the 
government next turned its efforts against those that still 
remained. With a force of fifteen hundred men, Don 
Guadalupe Victoria had infested the intendancy of Vera 
Cruz for some years, and bade defiance to the exertions 
of the enemy's troops sent against him. Familiar with the 
country where he had established himself — its mountain 
passes and untravelled paths — this famous guerilla traversed 
the province from the Rio Baraderas* to the Panuco, attack- 
ing the royalists, capturing their convoys, and spreading 
terror throughout the land. Never allowing himself to be 
drawn into a general engagement, he generally took the 
field with a small force, keeping the main body of his men 

* Otherwise called Rio Lagartos. 

(119) 



120 VICTORIA SEIZES BOQUILLA DE PIEDRAS. 

as a corps de reserve. If defeated by the enemy, and his 
followers killed or dispersed, he would retire to his mountain 
fastness, and recruiting his band, he would renew the 
struggle in some other part of the country with an energy 
which astonished his adversaries. Twenty times did the 
only journal in Mexico announce the defeat of this dis- 
tinguished rebel, and the utter extinction of the patriot 
party in the province of Vera Cruz, and as many times 
were they undeceived by the re-appearance of Victoria at 
the head of a formidable band. He seemed to bear a 
charmed life — to be invincible by the ordinary means used 
against him. The people of the province were never 
injured by the insurgent chief, w^hose respect for religion 
and the rights of his fellow-men extorted praise even from 
his bitterest foes.* He made war, not upon his oppressed 
countrymen, but upon the tyrannical government which 
for three centuries had trampled them to the earth, deny- 
ing them the common privileges of humanity. The gue- 
rilla had many friends among them, from whom he obtained 
supplies for his troops, and intelligence of the designs of 
his enemies, who w^ere often decoyed by the peasants into 
an ambush, and cut to pieces, ere they suspected the 
approach of a hostile force. 

The Mexican Junta, when the affairs of their party 
assumed a favorable aspect, had dispatched Jose Manuel 
de Herrera to New Orleans as their agent, with full powers 
to act in their behalf in all matters of a political or com- 
mercial character. Padre Herrera (for he also was an 
ecclesiastic) procured arms, ammunition and supplies for 
the patriots, and even issued commissions, military and 
naval, in the name of the Junta. In order to ensure the 
reception of certain munitions of war sent to him by this 
person, Victoria seized the small port of Boquilla de Piedras, 
situated on the northern coast of Vera Cruz. He was not 

* Zavala's Hist. Rev. Nueva Espagna. 



RAYON RETIRES FROM THE CONTEST. 121 

permitted to hold it long. The enemy marched against 
him with a superior force: he was compelled to retire to 
the hills, where, being pursued, his fortune changed, and 
he soon found it impossible to continue the contest with 
any hope of success.* 

The energy of the government was fully developed in 
hunting down this formidable chief. They reduced him to 
extremity by cutting off his supplies, killing his men, and 
dispersing his once terrible bands. 

Victoria himself fled beyond the reach of the enemy, and 
concealed amid the craters of extinct volcanoes which 
abound in the province, he eluded his pursuers; and 
though universally supposed to be dead, he lived to witness 
the downfall of the Spanish power in America. Guadalupe 
Victoria was brave, able, and a sincere patriot; but, like the 
rest of his compatriots, jealous of his power, and too fond 
of exercising it upon trifling occasions. 

Don Ignacio Rayon, who had established his head-quar- 
ters at the fort of Copero, in the province of Valladolid, 
becoming " disgusted with the selfish and sanguinary con- 
duct of the several insurgent leaders," resolved to yield 
up his strong-hold, and retire from the contest. He had 
repeatedly urged the necessity of combining the "patriot 
forces for the purpose of bringing the war to a crisis, and 
had often remonstrated with his colleagues against their 
cruel and bloody policy in slaying their prisoners. His 
interference was repudiated with disdain by the guerillas, 
who carried out the lex talionis to its utmost limit. Being 
an intelligent and refined man. Rayon determined to aban- 
don a cause polluted by so many crimes, and surrendered 
the fort of Copero into the hands of the Viceroy. He had 
been one of the most determined enemies of the govern- 
ment, and though an able lawyer, he was a very unsuccess- 
ful commander. 

* Robinson's Memoirs. Zavala's Hist. Revolution. 



122 TREACHERY OF GOMEZ. 

Ossourno was now the only dangerous enemy left in the 
field with whom the royalists had to contend. This per- 
sonage commanded two thousand of the best cavalry in 
Mexico ; and confining his operations to the vicinity of the 
capital, he rendered himself extremely obnoxious to the 
viceregal authorities. Devoid of principle, and those feel- 
ings of humanity which are often found in the rudest cha- 
racters, Ossourno was little better than a robber, bent upon 
plundering the people, under the guise of patriotism. His 
followers, like himself, were steeped in sensuality and crime, 
and hesitated at no deed, however atrocious, in order to 
gratify their depraved passions. Towns and villages were 
burned, fields laid waste, and even the sacred precincts of 
the cloister violated by these lawless ruffians, who swept 
like a hurricane across the province, dangerous to friend as 
well as foe. 

The infamous Vincente Gomez, the lieutenant of Ossourno, 
distinguished himself by his disregard of all laws, human 
and divine. He delighted to torture his unhappy prisoners, 
mutilating their persons in a shocking manner, ere he con- 
signed them to death. Gomez was in the habit of boasting 
that he had murdered several Spaniards without shedding 
their blood — the miscreant had buried his victims alive.* 
Such deeds of cruelty rendered him terrible to the enemy, 
who endeavored, but in vain, to bring him to condign pun- 
ishment. Finding it impossible to kill or capture him, they 
entered into negotiation with the wretch, and finally caused 
him to desert his band, by guaranteeing him the same rank 
in the royal army which he. held under Ossourno. Through 
the instrumentality of Gomez, the force commanded by 
Ossourno was surprised and cut to pieces, the villain 
adding to his other crimes the damning sin of treachery. 
Such was the fate of the principal leaders of the pa- 
triot party. The Viceroy garrisoned every town in the 

* Robinson's Memoirs. 



JOSE ANTONIO TORRES. 123 

revolted provinces, and by this means overawed the people. 
He was not able, however, to rid the country entirely of the 
hostile bands which infested certain parts of both the 
eastern and western intendancies. These irregular bodies 
of troops were commanded by " illiterate and brutal peas- 
ants," whose insensibility to fear had raised them above 
their fellow-brigands to stations peculiarly jfitted to display 
their abilities in oppressing their miserable victims. The 
intelligent portion of the liberals, disgusted with the licen- 
tiousness and cruelty of these wretches, gradually withdrew 
from the districts occupied by their forces, and placed 
themselves under the protection of the Spanish troops; 
the Viceroy having granted the royal pardon to all who 
submitted to his authority. 

The most formidable of these guerillas was Jose Antonio 
Torres, an ecclesiastic, formerly curate of Naranjas, a small 
pueblo inhabited by ignorant serfs, over whom he had ruled 
in a despotic manner. This member of the Church militant 
had buckled on the uniform of an officer over his cassock, 
and assumed the title of a Marescal del Campo in the 
insurgent army. Cunning, licentious, cruel, and vindictive, 
he was never known to spare an enemy or even a friend, 
who stood in the road to his preferment. A ruffian — 
among the vilest of the human race — a false friend, and 
a treacherous enemy — debauched, wicked, and degraded, 
Torres had one redeeming trait, 

"A single virtue linked to a thousand crimes." 
He loved his country! and desired nothing so much as 
her emancipation from the tyranny of Spain. He hated the 
government, and all connected with it, and rejected with 
anger and contempt the offers of rank and wealth made 
him, if he would abjure his principles, and accept the royal 
pardon.* Torres had established himself upon the hill of 
Los Remedios, in the province of Guanajuato, which he 

* Robinson. 



124 PADRE TORRES. 

had fortified in the strongest manner. It commanded the 
rich plains of the Baxio, which was better cultivated than 
any part of Mexico, and covered with populous towns and 
pueblos ; through it wound the Rio Santiago, which, after a 
course equal to that of the Rhine, falls into the Bay of San 
Bias, on the Pacific. The rebel leader divided the country 
into military districts, over which presided his subalterns, 
appointed by himself. Each commander exercised unlim- 
ited sway over the lives and property of those who resided 
within their jurisdictions, responsible to no one but Torres. 
They levied contributions in the name of the patriot cause, 
inflicted punishments, and denounced as traitors all who 
murmured at their arbitrary conduct. 

The whole number of men who acknowledged Torres as 
their chief were about seven thousand. They were nearly 
all Indians, or Mestizoes, who took the field mounted, and 
armed with long lances. They were seldom paid, except 
they were fortunate in plundering a village or cutting off a 
royal convoy. They resided at their own homes, and 
mustered at the call of their several captains. When 
wearied of service they deserted with impunity, and were 
under such discipline as is usual among banditti actuated 
by no other purpose than love of an adventurous life, and 
the hope of booty. 

Padre Torres himself lived like an Oriental prince in his 
strong-hold of Los Remedios, surrounded by women and 
all the luxuries which abound in the tropics: "In the 
height of his glory, he was seen surrounded by sycophants 
and women, singing the most fulsome songs in his praise, 
while extended on his couch, fanned by a delicate hand, 
the sultan himself would listen with rapture to the grossest 
adulation, indulging in loud bursts of laughter, arising from 
his heartfelt satisfaction. Swelling and exulting with vain- 
glory, he would often exclaim, 'Yo soy gefe de todo el 
mundo :' 'I am the chief of the whole world.'" As an 
illustration of the absurdly cruel policy pursued by Torres, 



CRUELTY OF TORRES. 125 

it will be scarcely necessary to relate more than the follow- 
insf instances of his reckless conduct : 

In order to check the advance of the King's troops, 
who after the dispersion of the most formidable leaders 
of the patriot forces, had entered the Baxio, and taken 
possession of its principal cities, Torres resolved to destroy 
them. Accordingly he commanded the inhabitants of the 
"wealthy, populous, and flourishing" towns of Perjamo, 
El Valle de Santiago, and Puruandiro, to remove their 
valuables within six hours, and then to set their respective 
dwellings on fire. The people living in the two former 
places obeyed the mandate ; those of the latter besought 
the tyrant for more time, in order that they might remove 
all their effects. Torres refused to listen to them ; and 
becoming enraged, sent his myrmidons to Puruandiro, 
who running through the streets with burning torches, fired 
every house in the town, save the churches. At one time, 
while passing near a pueblo, in the Baxio, he saw the inhab- 
itants flying to a hill in the vicinity. Entering the place, 
he called them back, and regardless of their assertions 
that they had mistaken his escort for a body of the king's 
troops, he ordered every tenth man to confess, and prepare 
for instant death. This cruel sentence was carried into 
effect — the tears and prayers of the waives and children of 
the victims making no impression upon the relentless butcher, 
who remained to witness the execution.* 

That he might at least keep up an appearance of acting 
under authority, Torres maintained a correspondence with 
the Revolutionary Committee, which had been organized 
after the dissolution of the Junta at Tehuacan. This body 
consisted of four members: of Don Ignacio Ayolo, who was 
president ; Francis Loxero, Mariano Tercero, and Doctor 
Jose San Martin. The committee met at the fortress of 
Jauxilla, about sixty miles from Los Remedios. Overawed 

* Memoirs of the Mexican Revolution. 



126 XAVIER MINA. 

by the guerillas, these functionaries were the mere tools 
of Padre Torres, and dared not oppose his will, however 
injurious it might be to the interests of the party. 

Such was the state of the patriot cause in the beginning 
of the year 1817, when another actor appeared amid the 
scenes of the civil wars which desolated Mexico, blazed 
brightly for a brief space, and was lost in the darkness 
which followed. But though lost, he is not forgotten, nor 
ever will be, as long as mankind are capable of apprecia- 
ting the deeds of a hero — deeds which were not without 
their influence long after the hero himself slept beneath the 
sod that was stained with his blood. Though no gilded 
mausoleum, rich with the spoils of a noble art, marks the 
spot where he lies, yet the Mexican, as he crosses the lonely 
hill crowned with the ruins of the dismantled fortress, sighs 
as he casts his eyes on the grave below, and mutters a 
prayer for the soul of Xavier Mina. 



CHAPTER 11. 

Xavier Mina — His Birth, Parentage, and early Exploits — Sails for 
Mexico — Lands on Galveston Island — Commodore Aury — Col- 
onel Perry — The Expedition sails for the Rio Santander — Soto 
la Marina — Defeat of La Garza — Mina's Plans — Desertion of 
Colonel Perry and Fifty Men — Sufferings of the Fugitives — Des- 
perate Battle between th« Americans and Mexicans — Heroic Death 
of Colonel Perry. 

Xavier Mina was born in the year 1789, near Monreal, 
in the province of Navarre. He was the eldest son of a 
noble and wealthy family, and a nephew of the famous 
Epoz y Mina. He was sent at an early age to Saragossa, 
in Arragon, to complete his studies. While a student there 
the French army entered Spain, and Joseph Bonaparte 
was placed upon the throne. Forsaking his studies, Mina 
joined the Spanish army of the north as a volunteer, and 
was engaged in several actions. 

After the battle of Belchite, and the defeat of the Span- 
iards, Mina, with a few followers, retired into Navarre, and 
adopting the mode of warfare practiced by his relative, 
Epoz, he soon became a formidable guerilla chief. At one 
time he captured seven hundred of the enemy, together 
with a large amount of money and military stores, destined 
for the French army. The force under his command was 
at no period very great ; yet from his knowledge of the 
province to which he confined his operations, he was 
enabled to elude the vigilance of his pursuers, and to worst 
them upon all occasions. Brave, generous, and humane, 
Mina was distinguished as much by the gentleness which 
characterized his conduct as by the chivalrous nature of his 

C127) 



126 THE TWO MINAS REVOLT. 

exploits. He was entirely free from that ferocity, and 
blood-thirsty spirit of revenge, which was so rife among the 
Spanish guerillas. The Junta of Seville, as some reward 
for his great services, gave him a colonel's commission, 
and soon after appointed him commandant-general of 
Navarre. The Supreme Junta of Arragon subsequently crea- 
ted Mina commandant-general of Upper Arragon.* 

In the winter of 1810-11, Mina was ordered to destroy 
an extensive foundry, situated in the vicinity of Pampeluna. 
While passing through a defile of the mountains, he sud- 
denly found himself between two strong parties of the 
French, who had entered either extremity of the pass, and 
thus cut off his advance or retreat. Determined to force 
his way through every obstacle, Mina fought desperately, 
until overcome by superior numbers, his party was obliged 
to yield to the fortune of war, and surrender. Mina him- 
self, fell wounded and a prisoner, into the hands of the 
French. He was taken to Paris, and afterwards confined 
in the castle of Vincennes, by order of Napoleon. He 
remained in durance until the allied armies entered France, 
when he was liberated, upon the abdication of the emperor. 

Mina returned to the peninsula in 1813 ; and having 
been an active partisan of the Constitutionalists, he was 
regarded with no favorable eye by the restored monarch, 
who, unable to deny his services, offered him the command 
of the troops then operating against the Mexican rebels. 
Mina refused to accept the appointment, and withdrew into 
Navarre, where Epoz y Mina was at the head of a con- 
siderable force. When his refusal was known, the king 
deprived Epoz of his command. The two Minas, enraged 
at the conduct of Ferdinand, resolved to proclaim the Con- 
stitution, and raise the standard of revolt. Having secured 
the assistance of several officers belonging to the garrison 
of Pampeluna, a plot was laid to place that important for- 

* Memoirs. 



MINA'S EXPEDITION SAILS. 129 

tress in their possession. The sentinels were withdrawn, 
and ladders fixed to the walls, and every thing prepared 
for the consummation of the plan, when an unfortunate 
occurrence prevented the advance of Epoz y Mina at the 
appointed time, which w^as midnight. The scheme was in 
consequence abandoned, and the officers connected with it 
fled into France. Xavier Mina was taken prisoner near 
Bayonne. Being liberated he retired to England, where 
he formed the resolution of aiding the patriots of Mexico 
in freeing themselves from the tyranny of Spain. Procuring 
a vessel, which he loaded with arms and munitions of war, 
Mina sailed from England in May, 1816, accompanied by 
several Spanish and Italian officers. Arriving safely at 
Baltimore, he made a considerable addition to his military 
stores. He purchased a brig w^hich was capable of being 
converted into a vessel of war, and procured cannon, cloth- 
ing, and necessaries for his troops. 

The Spanish envoy, resident at Washington, hearing of 
these preparations, addressed the American government 
upon the subject, demanding its interference in suppressing 
the expedition. The request of Don Luis de Onis was not 
complied with by the government, which was not disposed 
to meddle in the affair as long as Mina did not openly 
violate the laws of the Republic. Mina's vessels being 
under English colors, De Onis then applied to the British 
consul at Baltimore to aid him in detaining the adventurers. 
This personage did every thing in his power to attain that 
purpose, but without success ; being compelled to yield up 
the ship's papers, which he had unlawfully detained.* 

On the 21st of September, 1816, the expedition sailed' 
from Baltimore. It consisted of two fast sailing vessels,, 
on board of which were two hundred infantry, and a com- 
pany of artillery, most of whom were Americans. Touching, 
at St. Domingo, the adventurers were received hospitably 

* Memoirs. 



130 MAJOR SARDA LANDS AT RIO GRANDE. 

iby President Petion, who assisted them in repairing their 
ships, which had been injured in a storm. This delayed 
their voyage, and they did not reach Galveston Island, the 
place of their destination, until the 24th of November. 

According to a previous arrangement, Mina, upon his 
arrival at Galveston, found General Aury (a patriot officer) 
•encamped upon the eastern extremity of the Island, where 
.he had fortified his position by throwing up an embankment 
of sand, upon which he had placed several pieces of heavy 
ordnance. The force under this commander amounted to 
two hundred men, one hundred of whom were Americans; 
the others were Mexicans, Negroes, and renegadoes from 
all parts of the world. The former were under the imme- 
diate command of Colonel Perry, the same officer who had 
fought under General Toledo, near San Antonio de Bexar, 
on the 18th of August, 1813. Escaping from that engage- 
ment. Perry had joined his fortunes to those of the Mexican 
patriots once more, in the hope of witnessing the ultimate 
triumph of the cause of w^hich he was an ardent partisan. 
Upon the arrival of Mina, Perry resolved to leave the 
service of Aury, and enlist under the former. This move- 
ment created considerable disturbance in the camp, and 
it was not without difficulty that bloodshed was prevented, 
as both parties were much excited. The adventurers 
remained during the winter at Galveston. 

On the 27th of March, 1817, Mina sailed for the mouth 
of the Rio Santander, on the coast of San Luis Potosi. 
The fleet consisted of seven vessels, of small size and light 
draught. Wlien off the Rio Grande, it was found necessary 
to replenish their stock of water. Major Sarda was sent 
ashore upon this duty. Being mistaken for a royalist, he 
was unmolested by the soldiers who were stationed to guard 
the mouth of the river, and to prevent the privateers and 
pirates of the Gulf from obtaining supplies. While the 
party were engaged in filling their water casks, four of the 
men deserted, and gave the enemy the alarm. In a few 



MINA ISSUES A MANIFESTO. 131 

days the squadron arrived at its destination, and on the 
15th of April Mina disembarked his troops, meeting with 
no opposition from the royalists or the people of the country. 
Fifty miles from the mouth of the Santander, there was a 
small town, called Soto la Marina, situated on the left bank 
of the river. Sending the main body of his force up the 
stream by land, and loading his boats with cannon and 
munitions, Mina arrived, without meeting a single enemy, 
at Soto la Marina; the government having left the coast 
open to the invaders, although the deserters had announced 
their approach. 

Don Felix la Garza, the commandant of the district, 
who was at the head of some three hundred men, aban- 
doned the town upon the advance of Mina, taking with 
him the respectable portion of the inhabitants ; acting upon 
their fears by picturing the invaders as a band of miscreants, 
whose only object was plunder. The people that remained, 
among whom was the Cura, were agreeably disappointed by 
the conduct of the strangers, whose kindness >soon won 
their good opinion. 

One of Mina's first acts was to issue a manifesto, set- 
ting forth the causes which had brought him to Mexico, 
and explaining his intentions in .connecting himself with 
the patriots. The proclamation produced the desired effect, 
and not only calmed the apprehensions of the Mexicans, 
but brought more than two hundred of them to his camp. 
Obtaining a supply of horses, Mina organized a squadron 
of cavalry, and dividing them into parties, sent them in 
different directions to observe the movements of the enemy. 
One of these bodies penetrated to Santander, the capital 
of the colony, without opposition. About six leagues from 
Soto la Marina was the hacienda of Palo Alto, the property 
of Don Ramon de la Mora, who had promised to furnish 
the adventurers with supplies. This personage, however, 
had no intention of keeping his word, but suddenly fled, 
taking with him all of his valuable movables, and a large 



132 MINA FORTIFIES HIS CAMP. 

amount of money. Mina immediately set off in pursuit 
with a detachment of twenty horse, and a company of foot 
under Colonel Perry. The cavalry returned from the 
search, having taken the wrong track. The infantry, push- 
ing forward, overtook the fugitives the following morning: 
as Perry advanced they fled, leaving the treasure, which 
was taken possession of without scruple. Scarcely had 
they done this, when the party were attacked by Don Felix 
la Garza, who had been escorting the fugitives with a body 
of three hundred cavalry. Perry prepared to defend his 
spoils, although his force did not number more than eighty 
men, rank and file. Riding forward, the Mexican leader 
demanded a parley, and offered the royal pardon, and 
good treatment to them, if they would surrender themselves 
prisoners of war. This being refused, Garza charged upon 
the party with great fury, but he was unable to break his 
adversaries' line. The attempt was repeated with no better 
success; and the Mexicans finding them determined to 
resist to the last, precipitately fled, leaving a part of their 
number dead upon the field. This affair inspired the 
adventurers with great contempt for the enemy, while it 
increased the dread already felt for the invaders, whose 
numbers and prowess were exaggerated to a ridiculous 
extent. 

Don Joaquin Arredondo, the captain-general of the 
eastern provinces, having received intelligence of the land- 
ing of Mina, prepared to march against him without delay. 
The head-quarters of this general was at Monterey, the 
capital of Nueva Leon, With considerable difficulty, he 
was able to muster two thousand men, a force sufficiently 
powerful to drive the adventurers from the country. Aware 
of the impossibility of attempting to maintain his position 
against such superior numbers, Mina, whose forces con- 
sisted of but four hundred and eighty men, resolved to 
fortify his camp at Soto la Marina, and with a portion of 
his troops to advance into the interior, and forming a 



DESERTION OF PERRY. 133 

junction with the patriots of Guanajuato, return and meet 
the enemy. All hands were accordingly set to work con- 
structing a fort ; the people of the country, who had become 
their warm friends, willingly assisted them, and in a few 
days the earthen walls were completed. Several large 
guns were brought up the river and mounted upon the fort, 
among which there were two large mortars. The stream 
being very narrow at this point, it was found necessary to 
throw up defences upon the opposite bank, in order to 
protect the rear of the fort. This work was begun, but 
unfortunately never finished. Procuring a supply of beef 
and maize from the Mexicans of the vicinity, the fortress 
was victualed for a siege, and considered strong enough 
to hold out until the return of Mina with reinforcements. 
As Mina was preparing to march toward the south, 
Colonel Perry announced his determination to leave the 
camp and return to the States, considering their force too 
weak to achieve any great object. During the absence of 
Mina from the camp. Perry addressed his men upon the 
dangerous character of the enterprise they had embarked 
in, and persuaded fifty of their number to desert with him. 
Leaving Soto la Marina, they marched along the sea shore 
in the direction of Matagorda Bay, where they intended to 
procure boats to convey them to the frontiers of Louisiana. 
They began their disastrous retreat in the latter part of 
May, when the heat of the sun is very great, and water 
extremely scarce. The sufferings of the party were aggra- 
vated by the enemy, whose troops hung upon their rear, 
and attacked them upon every favorable opportunity during 
the march. The adventurers had already begun to con- 
gratulate themselves in having arrived in the vicinity of 
their destination, when in an evil moment, their leader 
resolved to attempt the capture of a fortress garrisoned by 
a small body of the enemy. Perry accordingly summoned 
the place to surrender. While the astonished commandant 
was deliberating upon this unlooked-for demand, a party 



134 DEATH OF PERRY. 

of two hundred royalist cavalry appeared upon the plain. 
Their approach changed the aspect of the day, and reversed 
the relative position of the belligerents. The Americans, 
forming into line of battle, received the charge of the 
lancers with a volley, which checked their career, and which 
would have doubtless terminated the contest, had not the 
garrison of the fort sallied out and attacked them in the 
rear. Surrounded upon all sides by an overwhelming force, 
there was no alternative but to fight to the last extremity; 
and gallantly did these desperate men sustain their repu- 
tation : they poured a deadly shower of balls into the ranks 
of the enemy every moment, beating off the cavalry, and 
forcing the infantry to retire before their murderous dis- 
charge. Great numbers of both parties had fallen ; yet 
hopeful of victory, they fought on. Again and again did 
the lancers charge upon the now diminished line, and 
aided by the garrison in the rear, endeavor to break through 
the slender, but compact wall of heroes. Blackened w^ith 
smoke and powder, their garments rent by the enemy's 
shot, and bleeding from a thousand wounds, the adventurers 
continued the struggle like men who had devoted them- 
selves to death. The sun had disappeared in the west, 
and the shadows of night were gathering thick upon the 
plain — a few miserable beings alone remained, whose ex- 
hausted efforts no longer served to check the charge of the 
foe. As the darkness deepened, a single individual still 
waved his sword in defiance : it was the leader of the 
Americans, who, disdaining to yield, fell, Roman-like, by 
his own hand ! 



CHAPTER III. 

MiNA Marches toward the South — He is Opposed by the Enemy, 
under Colonel Arminan — El Valle de Mais — Battle of Peotillas — 
Defeat of the Spanish Forces — The Crafty Priest of Hideonda — 
The Women of Espiritu Santo — Capture of Real del Pinos — 
Execution of a Soldier for Sacrilecre — Mina Enters Guanajuato — 
Termination of the March at Sombrero — Mina's Evil Genius. 

Receiving intelligence that Arredondo was within a 
short distance, Mina left Soto la Marina on the 24th of 
May, with a force composed of one hundred and twenty- 
four cavalry, and one hundred and seventy-six infantry. 
The fort was manned by one hundred soldiers, under the 
command of Don Jose Sarda, an active and gallant Spanish 
officer, whose subsequent conduct proved him to be worthy 
of the highest praise. In order that he might move rapidly, 
Mina mounted his infantry during the march. Taking a 
circuitous route, in order to avoid the enemy, the division, 
guided by an Indian, plunged into the wilderness ; and 
following the most unfrequented paths, they wound their 
way through dense thickets of cactus, and gloomy forests, 
which impeded their progress, and exhausted the feeble 
animals they bestrode. About the 1st of June, the detach- 
ment, after having suffered terribly from hunger, thirst, and 
fatigue, arrived at the town of Altamira, on the river Panuco, 
a place of considerable importance. Entering the town 
without opposition, Mina seized upon a cavallada of horses 
which had been collected for the use of Colonel Arminan, 
who was preparing to dispute the advance of the division. 

On the 8th of June it was understood that the enemy's 
cavalry were in strong force at a point between Altamira 

(135 3 



136 MINA PURSUES ARMINAN. 

and El Valle de Mais, a small town a few miles up the 
stream. Too wise a commander to leave an enemy in his 
rear when he could risk an engagement, Mina moved on 
in quest of the party referred to, and came in sight of 
them a few miles from El Valle de Mais. They were two 
hundred in number, and had posted themselves upon an 
eminence which overlooked the road. In their rear was an 
equal number held in reserve. Dismounting his infantry, 
the general ordered them to advance under cover of a 
thicket, and attack the cavalry in flank. A few volleys 
caused them to fall back upon their reserve. Following up 
their success, the enemy becoming panic stricken, turned 
and fled rapidly. Mina pursued them, with twenty of his 
best mounted men, and chased them through the town. 
Presently the fugitives halted, as if determined to make a 
stand ; but no sooner did they perceive the twenty dragoons 
approaching, than they again turned their horses' heads, and 
again applying their huge spurs vigorously, they disappear- 
ed over the plain. The enemy lost several men, killed, 
wounded, and prisoners, besides a field-piece, which they 
left behind them in their haste. Mina entered El Valle de 
Mais as a conqueror ; but mindful of his duty, as the sworn 
foe of the oppressor, he treated the inhabitants with great 
kindness, merely levying a moderate requisition, when he 
might have pillaged the town with impunity. 

On the 9th, Mina learned that Arminan was about to 
advance against him with the European regiment of Estra- 
madura, and a strong body of Mexican cavalry. Leaving 
the town, the division resumed the march towa'rd the south. 
On the night of the 12th they encountered a party of horse 
on their route to join Arminan ; attacking a company of 
Mina's men, they drove them back upon the main force. 
Marching night and day, the command reached the hacienda 
of Peotillas on the evening of the 14th of June. On the 
west of the hacienda arose a chain of hills, running north 
and south ; on the eastern side was a great plain, covered 



BATTLE OF PEOTILLAS. 137 

with fields of corn and dense chaparal. On the morning 
of the 15th, as the half-famished soldiers were preparing 
the only food they had seen for some days, the alarm was 
given that the enemy were upon them. Forming his men 
into order of battle, Mina advanced to an eminence and 
beheld four hundred cavalry within a short distance, to the 
east, posted upon the skirts of a thicket ; far behind w^as 
seen a dense cloud of dust, indicating the advance of the 
enemy's main body. It was impossible to avoid the threat- 
ened danger ; the only alternative was to fight against 
overwhelming numbers or to surrender. He preferred the 
former. Dividing his force, he left one portion at the 
hacienda as a reserve, under the command of Colonel 
Naboa; with the other, numbering one hundred and seventy- 
two men, cavalry and infantry, he descended into the plain. 
The enemy immediately charged upon them, but were driven 
back by a well directed fire from the infantry. They charged 
again, but with no better success, leaving several killed and 
wounded as they retired. Manoeuvring so as to engage 
the attention of Mina's division, the enemy kept beyond the 
range of their fire, until the main body under Arminan 
approached. Advancing under cover of the chapparal, the 
regiment of Estramadura opened a tremendous fire upon 
Mina's flank before their presence was known. Astonished, 
but not dismayed, Mina gave the word to retire upon the 
reserve. As they fell back, the enemy deployed into the 
open plain, beating the charge, and pouring a heavy fire 
into the ranks of the retreating party. Unable to witness 
the slaughter of his brave followers, Mina halted; and receiv- 
ing assurance of victory from the flashing eyes of his men, 
he determined to make a desperate stand. The enemy also 
paused, with their left resting upon a fence, which sur- 
rounded a field of corn, and their right flank and rear pro- 
tected by a strong division of cavalry. A squadron of the 
enemy's lancers now advanced, and commenced killing the 
wounded, by transfixing them upon their weapons. Having 



138 ARMINAN DEFEATED. 

loaded their guns with ball and buck-shot, the battalion 
under Mina (most of them were Americans) charged in 
regular order until within a few yards of the hostile line, 
when bursting into a loud yell, they discharged their 
pieces, and threw themselves upon the enemy with the bayo- 
net. The regiment of Estramadura was composed of 
Spanish veterans, the survivors of many a bloody field ; but 
their valor forsook them now, and wavering for an instant, 
as if uncertain whether to advance or fly, they were seized 
with a panic and fled; horse and foot mingled together in 
inextricable confusion, the cavalry riding over the infantry 
in their haste to escape from the fatal scene. Mina's loss 
in this engagement was in killed and wounded fifty-six ; that 
of the royalists was unknown, but it must have been very 
great. The division returned to the hacienda to finish the 
breakfast which had been so rudely interrupted, while 
Arminan fled to Altamira, from whence he dictated a dis- 
patch to the governor of San Luis Potosi, informing that 
personage that he had met and had been defeated by a 
handful of men, who seemed determined to "die killing!" 
So assured was Arminan of victory that he had proclaimed the 
arrival of the hour which would place the rebel Mina a 
prisoner in his hands. Vain boast ! Instead of a triumph 
he encountered a disgraceful defeat — instead of honor, he 
reaped the coward's merited rebuke, having been routed by 
a force scarcely one-tenth as great as his own, in an open 
field, where he had selected his position, and enjoyed every 
advantage over his foe. Upon the dead body of an officer 
was found the muster-roll of the royal forces, showing 
Arminan's command to consist of seven hundred European 
infantry and eleven hundred native Mexican cavalry. 
Among other documents, was an order of the day forbid- 
ding the troops to give quarter to the conquered, or to 
seize the spoils, until after the destruction of Mina and his 
men! 



MINA ENTERS ESPIRITU SANTO. 139 

Fearful that the royalist leader would recover from his 
panic, and cease to fly when none pursued, Mina resolved 
to march before he could reorganize his troops, or attempt 
to dispute his passage. With characteristic humanity, Mina 
had shown the same attention to the enemy's wounded as 
to those belonging to his own followers. Before leaving 
Peotillas, he commended four of his men to the royalist 
leader who had been dangerously injured, requesting him to 
reciprocate the kindness displayed toward the disabled sol- 
diers of the king. This request was complied with, and 
the unfortunate men received every attention from the hands 
of the royalists. 

Two hours after midnight, on the morning of the 16th 
of June, the adventurers resumed the march toward the 
interior. Passing through the village of Hideonda, the priest 
ordered the bells to be rung, and the people under his 
charge to turn out and celebrate the glorious victory ob- 
tained over the government troops at Peotillas. The Padre 
of Hideonda was a staunch royalist, and had adopted this 
mode of conciliating the formidable strangers, in the hope 
of saving the town from a requisition. In this he was suc- 
cessful, the adventurers being delighted with the reception 
they met with. 

Continuing their march toward the south-west, the party 
approached the confines of Zacatecas, and, on the 18th, 
arrived at the hacienda of Espiritu Santo. It was a fortified 
position, and was garrisoned by a detachment of royalist 
troops. At the approach of Mina, the soldiers and male 
inhabitants fled. When the division drew near, a troop 
of women were seen issuing from the gates of the haci- 
enda, bearing an image of the Virgin, and chanting solemn 
hymns in her praise. Advancing with slow and measured 
steps, to the sound of plaintive voices, they paused in front 
of the terrible invaders, whom they had been taught to 
regard as the enemies of their country and their faith. 



140 ASSAULT OF REAL DEL PINOS. 

They had adopted this simple and touching method of 
softening the hearts of those they deemed men of violence 
and blood, albeit, doubtful of the reception they would meet 
with from the lawless heretics. Great, indeed, was their 
wonder and delight when they found themselves treated 
with unusual kindness and respect. Not only their per- 
sons, but their property was respected, the soldiers paying 
liberally for every thing they received. By such wise and 
humane conduct did Mina gain the hearts of all those he 
came in contact with. 

Leaving Espiritu Santo covered with the blessings of its 
inhabitants, the party reached the town of Real del Pinos, 
in Zacatecas, on the 18th of June. This was an important 
and wealthy place, situated among the hills, which abounded 
in the precious metals. It was fortified after a fashion, and 
was garrisoned by three hundred men. On the side next 
the hills the town was defended by a deep and wide ditch; 
on the opposite side was a wall and trenches, commanded 
by cannon placed upon the ramparts, which overlooked the 
approaches to the place. Pinos had once sustained an 
assault from a party of fifteen hundred rebels, and had bid 
defiance to their efforts to carry it by storm. It was there- 
fore deemed impregnable by its inhabitants ; and when 
Mina summoned it to surrender, his demand was rejected 
with scorn. Determined to capture the town, Mina waited 
until night, and dividing his men into small parties, he 
made an attack upon several points at the same moment. 
The enemy were upon the alert ; and opening a heavy fire 
upon them, compelled them to retire beyond the reach of 
their guns. The night was very dark, which proved favor- 
able to the assailants. About midnight, a party of fifteen 
men discovered a point where the roofs of the houses were 
very low, and communicated with the terraces which looked 
upon the plaza. Mounting the walls, they crept along the 
terraces in silence, and with the aid of their blankets 



MINA'S EVIL GENIUS. 141 

lowered themselves into the square. By the light of several 
torches placed there, they could discern a considerable body 
of troops under arms, and five pieces of cannon, placed so 
as to command the avenues leading to the plaza. Moving 
cautiously in the dark, until within a few paces of the enemy, 
the party suddenly awake the silence of the night by giving 
utterance to three terrific yells, and charging upon the 
astonished soldiers with fixed bayonets, they drove them 
from the square. The enemy fled in terror from the town, 
leaving it at the mercy of the daring adventurers. The 
place was given up to plunder, the leader of the party 
commanding his men to respect the persons of the inhabi- 
tants. One of the band having been caught in the act of 
stealing the golden vessels used at the altar of the Church, 
Mina ordered him to be put to death, as the crime had 
been forbidden as sacrilegious and indecent. On the fol- 
lowing day the division evacuated Real del Pinos, taking 
with them a great quantity of treasure, a stand of colors, 
four pieces of ordnance, and a number of small arms and 
military stores. 

Traversing the province of Zacatecas, the division en- 
tered the intendancy of Guanajuato about the latter end of 
June, and on the 23d they encountered a detachment of 
the patriot troops, who escorted them to the fortress of 
Sombrero, the termination of their weary and perilous march. 
As the adventurers, mounted upon their half-famished horses, 
ascended the heights of Ybarra, they saw on the plain below 
a strong body of the enemy under the command of Don 
Francis Orrantia.* This officer had marched from Que- 
retaro for the purpose of preventing the junction of Mina 
wnth the patriots of the interior. His force was seven 
hundred strong, but he was too late to effect his object, 

* This Orrantia was Mina's evil genius, whose dark shadow was 
constantly thrown upon his path, defeating his plans, and turning his 
brightest hopes into bitter disappointments. 



142 THE MARCH FROM SOTO LA MARINA. 

and as the division entered Sombrero, he retired to Villa 
de Leon, a city in the neighborhood. 

The adventurers were thirty days on the march from 
Soto la Marina, during which they had travelled six hun- 
dred and sixty miles, fought a bloody battle, taken several 
towns, and suffered many hardships by flood and field. 



CHAPTER IV. 

General Arredondo Besieges the Fort at Soto la Marina — Desertion 
of La Sala — Gallant Defence of the Garrison — Noble Action of a 
Mexican Woman — A Drove of Horses used as a Defence — Dis- 
comfiture of the Spaniards — Capitulation of the Fort — Cruel Treat- 
ment of the Prisoners — They Plan an Escape — March to Vera 
Cruz — The Fate of the Unfortunate Prisoners. 

After the departure of Mina, Don Jose Sarda, who had 
been left in command of the fort at Soto la Marina, pre- 
pared to resist the enemy, who were advancing rapidly. 
The village of Marina was burned, and every impediment 
cleared away from the vicinity of the fort, and a herd of 
cattle driven up for the use of the garrison. Several Mexi- 
cans enlisted in the ranks, and both officers and men 
were determined to risk their fortunes upon the issue of the 
siege. 

On the 8th of June, as Captain Andreas, with a party 
of twenty-five, was returning from a foraging expedition, 
he was attacked by two hundred and twenty royalist troops, 
and after a gallant struggle, the party were all killed or 
taken prisoners, except three. Those who had been cap- 
tured were put to death upon the spot. Andreas was saved 
upon condition of entering the ranks of the enemy. 

On the 11th of June, General Arredondo encamped 
within three miles of the fort with an army composed of 
one thousand infantry and twelve hundred cavalry, and was 
supported by a train of nineteen pieces of cannon. The 
garrison of the fort consisted of one hundred and thirteen 
men. On the earthen walls were three field pieces, two 

(143) 



144 STORMING OF THE FORT. 

howitzers, one mortar, and three carronades.* The works 
intended for the defence of the rear of the fort were not 
completed. On the 12th, the Spanish general opened a fire 
from a distant battery, which was continued at intervals for 
two days. On the following night. Captain La Sala and 
another officer escaped from the fort, and went over to the 
enemy. A party of three hundred cavalry approaching for 
the purpose of driving off the cattle which had been col- 
lected by the besieged, the latter sallied out, and attacking 
the former, compelled them to retire. The traitor La Sala, 
being well informed as to the condition of the works, super- 
intended the erection of a battery upon the opposite bank 
of the river, from which, on the 15th, a heavy fire was 
opened upon the rear of the fort from twelve pieces of 
ordnance. Another battery was erected upon the left ; thus 
placing the besieged between a cross-fire. Under cover 
of their cannon the enemy's light troops advanced to the 
bank of the stream, and cut off the garrison's supply of 
water. Mina's followers labored day and night to complete 
their defences, keeping up a steady discharge from their 
guns in answer to those of the hostile lines. The heat was 
extremely oppressive, and they began to suffer the worst 
of all tortures, the want of water, when a Mexican woman 
perceiving the men fainting at their posts from thirst, 
advanced to the stream, and amidst a heavy fire of mus- 
ketry, filled a vessel with the sparkling fluid, and bore it in 
safety to the exhausted soldiers. The well- delivered shot 
of the enemy soon began to tell with fatal effect upon the 
walls of the fort. Several of the guns were dismounted, 
and a portion of the works were leveled with the ground. 
Arredondo, seizing the favorable moment, ordered his co- 
lumns up to carry the place by storm. They advanced 
boldly, their trumpets and drums sounding the charge; 
the besieged, loading their cannon with musket balls to 

* Memoirs. 



TERMS OF CAPITULATION OFFERED. 145- 

the very muzzle, awaited their approach. The Spanish: 
infantry charged to within a short distance, shouting "Viva 
el Rey;" when within a hundred yards the garrison answer- 
ing them with the cry of "Viva la libertad, y Mina," dis- 
charged their guns, and spread havoc through their ranks : 
recoiling from the fire, the assailants turned and fled in 
terror and confusion. Rallying his troops, Arredondo again 
brought them to the assault, driving before them a caval- 
lada of horses in order to protect them from the terribly 
destructive fire of the besieged. Reserving the contents. 
of their guns until the attacking columns were within a few 
yards, the garrison applied their matches to the fatal tubes, 
and a sheet of flame, followed by a storm of iron hail,, 
rained upon the devoted heads of the advancing infantry, 
sweeping down whole companies at every discharge. The 
horses which were placed in the front, maddened with pain, 
reared back upon the men, and plunging among their 
lines, forced them to retreat in disorder. Again did the 
Spanish leader bring his troops to the assault, and again. 
were they repulsed with great slaughter. 

The firing now ceased on both sides. The besieged 
were exhausted by continued fatigue ; many of their can- 
non were dismounted, and a great number of their com- 
panions had been killed and wounded ; several Mexicans 
fled from the fort, moved by the same instinct which teaches 
the rats to leave a falling house. Calling those together 
who remained, Sarda inquired if they wished to share the 
fate of the garrison ? The reply was worthy of the days 
of Montezuma: they exclaimed, "We are ready to die 
with you!" Taking advantage of the cessation of hostili- 
ties, Arredondo sent a flag to the fort with a formal demand 
for its surrender. The answer was an unhesitating refusal. 
Another messenger was sent, bearing a promise to spare the 
lives of the besieged, if they would surrender prisoners of 
war. This offer was also rejected; and a third proposal 
was made by the Spanish general. "While conferring with 
10 . 



146 TREACHERY OF THE MEXICANS. 

■the last, Major Sarda was hailed by an aid of Arredondo, 
who informed him that his commander did not wish the 
destruction of men who had fought so bravely, and had 
authorized him to accept any terms the garrison might 
propose. 

The following articles of capitulation were then pre- 
sented to the enemy's messenger, as the only terms upon 
which they could agree to surrender: "All persons con- 
nected with the fort of Soto la Marina, were to deliver 
themselves up as prisoners of war, each one to be treated 
according to his rank ; the officers being allowed their 
liberty upon parole ; the Americans to be sent to the United 
States on the first opportunity ; the Mexicans to retire to 
their homes unmolested ; all private property to be res- 
pected ; the garrison to march out with the honors of war." 
These conditions were acceded to by the envoy, who de- 
clared, in presence of the garrison, his willingness to accept 
them, and pledged his honor, in the name of his general, 
that the conditions should be religiously fulfilled.* Having 
every confidence in the word of General Arredondo, the 
besieged did not demand a formal instrument, signed by 
the Spanish commander-in-chief. Mustering the remains 
of the garrison, thirty-seven in number, Major Sarda evacu- 
ated the fort, marching out with the honors of war. The 
• enemy were astonished at the small number of their gallant 
■foes. Arredondo, riding up to them, inquired, "Are these 
■all of your men?" Being answered in the affirmative, he 
exclaimed, in a tone of unfeigned surprise, "Is it possible!" 
The loss of the enemy, in their attempt to reduce this insig- 
nificant fortress, was six hundred killed and wounded. 

At first the prisoners were treated with kindness and 
respect. The viceroy, Apodaca, had recently offijred a par- 
don to all those who would surrender ; but at tlie end of the 
third day after the capitulation, they were placed under 

* Memoirs of the Mexican Revolution. 



CRUELTY TO PRISONERS. 147 

guard, and a portion of them compelled to demolish the 
fort, and bury the dead. A short time afterwards a party 
of men belonging to the expedition, who had been captured 
by Don Felix la Garza, -were brought in and put to death. 
Among these victims of a cruel and bloody policy was 
Lieutenant Hutchenson, an American, who, being wounded, 
was carried to tlie ground, and shot as he lay, unable to stand 
upon his feet. About the 1st of July the captives were 
removed to Altamira, and closely guarded. Conscious of 
the perfidy of their foes, and well assured of tlie fate w^hich 
awaited them, the prisoners determined to rise upon their 
guards, descend the Panuco to Tampico, and there seize a 
vessel and sail for home. An hour before the appointed 
time, a detachment of soldiers entered their prison, and 
bore them off to separate places of confinement in different 
parts of the town. Loaded with chains, like so many galley 
slaves, these unfortunates were marched, under a strong 
escort, toward Vera Cruz. They suffered terribly upon the 
route from heat, hunger, thirst, and disease. Their misery 
seemed to afford infinite delight to their guards, w^ho hurried 
them onward regardless of their pangs. Some of them 
fainted, and were bound to tlie horses of the cavalry with 
ropes, and dragged along. Others went mad, and besought 
their captors to end their torments by putting them to death. 
And when at length they arrived at Vera Cruz, 

" So bare, so withered, famished in the march," 

they were incarcerated in the dungeons of Sap Juan de 
UUoa, which were situated below the surface of the sea. 
In these gloomy receptacles, chained together in pairs, de- 
prived of light, air, and wholesome food, the wretched 
prisoners languished, a prey to hopeless misery and dis- 
ease. ^^^len the cells were opened, the sentinels often 
fainted, overcome by the effluvia that issued from these 
infernal pits. One day two of the captives were discov- 
ered lying side by side ; they had perished during the 



148 CRUELTY TO PRISONERS. 

night, unknown even to their companions. The governor 
of the castle, Don Juan Evia, was a perfect monster, who 
refused to allow the shackles to be removed from the limbs 
of a dying prisoner, though requested to do so by his own 
surgeon.* 

At least half of those captured at Sota la Marina died 
at Vera Cruz. Those who survived were sent to Spain. 
On their arrival at Cadiz, the governor of that city received 
a royal order, dated Madrid, June 11, 1818, signed by the 
Minister of War, setting forth, " That the Viceroy of New 
Spain having communicated his intention of sending to the 
Peninsula the individuals attached to the rabble with which 
Xavier Mina had invaded that kingdom, who had accepted 
the royal pardon ; that the individuals named in the list 
shall, on their arrival in Spain, be distributed in the Presidios 
of Cadiz, Malaga, Ceuta, Mellila, and Alhucemas : the re- 
maining twelve to be placed at the disposal of the captain- 
general of Majorca." This command was literally obeyed, 
the prisoners being sent to the different military stations on 
the coast of Africa, where, loaded with chains, and linked 
to the vilest malefactors, they were forced to toil during the 
remainder of their days. Some of them preferring any fate 
to that which had overtaken them, fled to the Moors of the 
desert, where tliey defied the persecutions of Spain. 

As there is no hereafter for nations, they are punished in 
this world for their misdeeds ; and dreadful has been the 
retribution poured out upon unhappy Spain, who, cherishing 
with fatal fondness her ancient institutions, is governed by 
the Gothic prejudices of the middle ages rather than by the 
enlightened policy of modern times. A prey to civil dis- 
cord and foreign spoliation, she stands a spectacle of fallen 
greatness, humbled pride, and diminished power. 

* Memoirs. 



CHAPTER V. 

Colonel Castanon—- Battle of San Juan de los Llanos — Defeat and 
Death of Castanon — A Mexican Croesus — Plunder of El Jural — 
Interview of Mina and the Patriot Chiefs — Conduct of Torres — 
Popularity of Mina — Policy of the Viceroy — Abortive Attempt 
upon Villa de Leon — Siege of Sombrero — Sufferings of the Pa- 
triots — Death of Colonel Young — Evacuation of the Fort, and 
Massacre of the Prisoners. 

General Mina was cordially welcomed by the com- 
mandant of Sombrero, Don Pedro Moreno, who fm-nished 
his men with an abundant supply of food for themselves 
and horses. After remaining a short time at the fortress, 
in order to recruit his weary followers, Mina again took 
the field against the royalists, who were in strong force 
in the vicinity, under Colonel Felipe Castanon, a brave, 
energetic, and skilful officer, whose peculiar merits had 
obtained for him the command of a flying division, com- 
posed of three hundred cavalry and four hundred infantry. 
He was allowed to act as his judgment dictated, being 
independent of his superiors in rank, and responsible 
to no one but the government. Castanon had been 
remarkably fortunate in his encounters with the patriots, 
defeating them in every engagement ; and as he usually 
celebrated his triumphs by a general massacre of his 
prisoners, he was held in universal dread by the people 
of the country. When the signal of his approach was 
given the inhabitants fled to the mountains ; and even 
the fierce guerillas shunned this formidable leader, as one 
too dangerous to contend with in the open field. 

On the 28th of June, 1817, it was rumored that Cas- 

(149) 



150 DEATH OF CASTANON. 

tanon was at the town of San Felipe, forty miles distant, 
preparing to march against Sombrero. Mina left the 
fort the same evening, at the head of three hundred and 
thirty men, cavalry and infantry, eighty of whom were 
lancers. On the march they were reinforced by a party 
of footmen who were equipped in a most primitive man- 
ner : armed with rusty &e-locks, some of which were 
without flints, bayonets, or locks, wrapped in ragged 
blankets, these tatterdemalions exhibited but little of the 
pride and pomp usually associated with warlike expedi- 
tions. On the morning of the following day, as the 
patriots advanced toward the ruins of San Juan de los 
Llanos, the enemy were descried marching in the same 
direction. Under cover of a low hill Mina formed his 
infantry in two columns, the Americans in the front, 
supported by the cavalry. Castanon, drawing his divi- 
sion up in line of battle, began the action by opening a 
fire from two pieces of cannon, loaded with grape-shot. 
Mina ordered his columns to advance, which they did in 
silence, under a heavy fire of grape and musketry, until 
within a few paces of the hostile line, when, delivering 
their fire in the faces of the enemy, they charged them 
with the bayonet ; the cavalry, following closely in the 
rear, now fell upon them with their swords and lances, 
and dashing among their already disordered ranks, scat- 
tered them in every direction over the plain. Colonel 
Castanon received a mortal wound, and after being car- 
ried by his horse from the field, he fell upon the earth 
a few leagues from the scene of his disaster, and was 
found M'-eltering in his blood. The loss of the royalists 
in this action was three hundred and thirty-nine killed, 
and two hundred and twenty prisoners ; they lost two 
field pieces, five hundred muskets, and a quantity of am- 
munition and baggage. Mina's loss was eight killed and 
nine wounded. During the fight, the enemy, having ex- 
hausted his shot, loaded his artillery with silver dollars, 



MINA TAKES POSSESSION OF JARAL. 151 

and fired the costly missiles at the patriots, who gathered 
them up after the action, and appropriated the coin to a 
very different purpose.* 

The news of this brilliant affair spread rapidly over 
the country, and raised the drooping spirit of the friends 
of liberty. The death of Castanon itself was regarded 
as an especial mercy from on high. The remnant of 
Castanon's division fled to the hacienda of El Jaral, a 
fortified position about seven leagues northeast of Gua- 
najuato. It was the property of Don Juan de Moncada, 
one of the most opulent and distinguished members of 
the Mexican nobility. His vast estates extended more 
than a hundi-ed miles, over a country remarkable for the 
fertility of its soil. He could count his cattle upon a 
thousand hills, and his vassals in a hundred villages. 
The Marquis of Jaral was a staunch royalist, and wil- 
lingly received the fugitives into his palacio, which was 
surrounded by a wall and ditch, and defended by three 
pieces of ordnance. On the 1st of July, Mina advanced 
against this place with a detachment of three hundi'ed men. 
As the garrison perceived his approach they took to flight, 
and did not pause until they reached the city of San Luis 
Potosi. In the luxurious mansion of this Mexican Croesus 
the patriot chief remained for two days, living daintily 
upon the abundant supplies the fortune of war had 
placed at his disposal. On the third day he returned 
toward Sombrero, taking with him a hundred and forty 
thousand dollars in money, and a few cattle to draw his 
wagons. The magnificent fm-nitm-e, the massive gold 
and silver plate, the costly goods stored in the ware- 
houses, were left untouched, by the express command of 
the General. 

On his route to Sombrero, Mina was informed that 
the most eminent leaders of the patriot party were 

* Memoirs of the Revoli;tion. 



152 POPULARITY OF MINA. 

assembled at the fortress, anxious to greet his return. 
When he arrived at Sombrero, he was warmly welcomed 
by the different political chiefs, who expressed themselves 
deeply indebted to him for his distinguished services in 
the cause to which he had devoted himself. General 
Torres alone regarded the stranger with distrust. Con- 
scious of the superiority of Mina, he felt rebuked in his 
presence, and hated him for his virtues. This feeling he 
endeavored to hide under a great show of civility, offering 
at once to place himself under the command of the suc- 
cessful partisan, who had done more to advance the cause 
in three weeks than he had done in as many years. Mina 
declared his determination to risk his life and fortunes 
upon the issue of the struggle ; he called upon the 
assembled chiefs to unite with him, promising them aid 
from abroad, and a successful termination to the war, if 
they would bend their energies to the task, and use the 
means the God of battles had placed in their hands. 
The patriot leaders, as he spoke, became infected with 
the enthusiasm which glowed in the heart of Mina ; and 
when he ceased, amid the expressions of applause with 
which they hailed his sentiments, even Torres, carried 
away by a momentary impulse, left his seat, and striding 
across the room, grasped the hand of the general, and 
exclaimed, " I have six thousand men to place under 
your orders !" " If that be the case," said Mina, " I will 
inarch straight upon the capital." Confiding in the 
promises of the perfidious priest, ]\Iina advanced him a 
considerable sum of money in payment of certain sup- 
ijilies he had pledged himself to furnish within a few 
(days. Torres also promised to raise an additional body 
.of troops to be placed at the command of the former, 
\who dispatched Colonel Naboa to Los Remedies for the 
purpose of organizing the new levies. 

The fame of the patriot chief had by this time spread 
over the length and breadth of the land; his exploits 



CHARACTER OF THE REBEL CHIEFS, 153 

had reached the mountaineer, among the fastnesses of the 
Sierra, and had startled the slumbers of the Indian of 
the south, as he reposed under the shade of the broad- 
leaved palm, on the burning plains of the Tierra Cali- 
ente. The rancheros from the revolted districts hastened 
to join his standard ; and even the prisoners he had taken 
in battle eagerly united their fortunes to those of the 
successful rebel. The wealthy and intelligent people of 
the capital and large cities, who were opposed to the 
government, congratulated each other upon the appear- 
ance of a leader worthy of their esteem and confidence. 
The mad career of Hidalgo had filled them with horror. 
Morelos, unwilling to exercise the power fortune had 
invested him with, had unwisely delegated it to a corrupt 
Junta, whose avarice was stronger than their patriotism, 
with whom gold was more potent than the cannon and 
bayonets of the government. Teran, Guerrero, and Vic- 
toria were brave, honest, and able men, but ambition and 
jealousy had destroyed their hopes, tarnished the glory 
of their achievements, and disaster, defeat, and death, had 
crowned the issue of their enterprise. Ossourno and 
Torres were mere freebooters, whose hands were soiled 
with the blood of women and children, whose cruelty and 
extortions had filled the land with mourning. In Mina, 
the chivalrous, high-souled Mina, who had already filled 
two hemispheres with his fame, the intelligent patriot 
beheld the champion under whose banners he could 
em-oll himself, assured of victory ; and such, indeed, 
would have been the case had the patriots risen en 
masse, and declared in his favor ; but dreading the 
power of the Viceroy, they were waiting for Mina to 
advance upon the capital, when they should have placed 
themselves under his command at this crisis. 

The government of Mexico, alarmed by the continued 
success of General Mina, resolved to abandon every other 
measure and concentrate its energies for the desti'uction 



154 ASSAULT ON VILLA DE LEON. 

of the formidable chief. The elite of the Spanish forces 
were mustered for this purpose, and placed under the 
command of the Inspector-General of Mexico, Don Pas- 
qual Linan. 

About the middle of July, Mina made an attempt 
upon Villa de Leon, a fortified town in the Baxio. He 
advanced toward it in the night, with a force of five 
hundred men and one piece of cannon, with the inten- 
tion of taking the place by surprise. A short distance 
from the town, they encountered a picket-guard, that had 
been placed upon the road by the enemy, who perceiv- 
ing their approach, fell back, and gave the alarm. The 
place was defended by a wall and trenches, and was 
usually garrisoned by seven hundi-ed troops. As the 
party drew near the walls they were greeted by a heavy 
discharge of ordnance and small arms. Forming his men 
into storming parties, Mina led them to the assault, and 
succeeded in carrying some of the outward defences, and 
taking a few prisoners; and the town would have soon 
been captured, had not the garrison at this moment been 
reinforced by a division of royalists on the march to Som- 
brero. This unexpected assistance revived the com'age 
of the besieged, and making a gallant charge, they beat 
off" the rebels, and regained possession of the works. At 
dawn, on the following morning, Mina di*ew off" his forces 
and retired to the fortress, with the loss of a hundi-ed 
men, killed and wounded. Some of the latter were left 
upon the field, and were put to death by the enemy, 
while Mina liberated the prisoners who had fallen into 
his hands during the night. 

On the 30th of July, a strong division of royalists, 
under the command of Don Pasqual Linan, Mas descried 
ascending the heights toward the fortress of Sombrero. 
It was composed of the Spanish regiments of Saragossa 
and Navarre, the Mexican regiment of Toluca, and the 
cavalry of San Luis, Queretaro, Sierra Gorda, and Appan, 



SIEGE OF SOMBRERO. 155 

making thirteen hundred and thirty infantry, and twelve 
hundred and eleven cavalry. To these were added another 
division, which, though not engaged in the siege, was a 
part of Linan's command. The whole amounted to three 
thousand live hundred and forty-one men. Linan also 
had ten field-pieces and two howitzers. Sombrero was 
situated upon the summit of a hill, elevated above the 
plain of Leon about a thousand feet. On the north was 
a range of heights, united to the fortress by a narrow 
pass, skirted by steep precipices. On the eastern side it 
was bounded by an immense barranca, or ravine, through 
the bottom of which flowed a rivulet, from which the 
garrison obtained their supply of water. The southern 
face of the hill was very steep, and divided below the 
fort into two promontories, which projected into the plain. 
On the west the boldness of the ascent presented a for- 
midable impediment to the advance of an enemy. The 
causeway connecting the fort with the hills was defended 
by a wall, flanked by cannon, which raked the pass. On 
the summit of a conical mound, which was situated with- 
in the fort, was another piece of ordnance, which also 
commanded the causev^^ay, which was the entrance to the 
fort. Seventeen crooked, rough, and misshapen guns were 
planted upon different parts of the defences. The quar- 
ters of the soldiers, the magazine, and hospital, were 
constructed on the south of the conical hill, and were 
sheltered by the projecting rocks among which they were 
built. The garrison of Sombrero consisted of six hun- 
dred and fifty men ; there were also three hundred women, 
children, and laborers, who had been employed in repair- 
ing the works. Torres had failed to send the promised 
supplies, and there were but ten days' rations in the fort 
when the siege began. 

The enemy proceeded to invest the fort by surrounding 
it on all sides. On an elevation, facing the entrance, 
they raised a battery of seven pieces of ordnance, near 



156 SUFFERINGS OF THE BESIEGED. 

which was the camp of the regiment of Saragossa, and 
a division of cavalry. At this point Linan established 
his head-quarters. On the south side, at the bifurcation 
of the hill, the regiment of Toluca and three hundred 
horse were intrenched behind a redoubt, mounted by a 
single piece of artillery. This division was commanded 
by the brigadier Negrete. The third division, composed 
of the Navarrese, and three hundred and seventy-nine 
cavalry, was posted in the barranca. A corps of light 
troops, under Colonel Rafal, traversed the country be- 
tween Los Remedies and Sombrero, for the purpose of 
cutting off the communication between the two fortresses. 
On the 31st, Linan opened a heavy fire of shot and shell 
from his batteries, which was returned at intervals by 
the besieged. The firing was kept up for several days 
without doing much mischief, the people in the fort be- 
ing sheltered by the conical hill.* On the 5th of August, 
the Spanish general ordered an assault upon the northern 
part of the works. His troops were opposed by Mina at 
the head of the garrison, who repulsed the enemy, not- 
withstanding they made a gallant effort to carry the 
place by storm. Retiring behind their batteries, they 
renewed the contest by throwing a continued stream of 
shot into the fort. 

The sufferings of the besieged soon became intoler- 
able. There was not a drop of water to be procured, 
except that which was brought from the rivulet at the 
bottom of the ravine, along which was placed a line of 
wakeful sentinels. At midnight, when all was silent in 
the hostile camps, a party of half-famished men would 
steal, under cover of the darkness, into the barranca, and, 
after a fierce struggle, succeed in obtaining a partial 
supply of the invaluable element. The horses and cattle 
ran mad for the want of it. Sometimes days passed 

* Memoirs of the Mexican Revolution. 



SORTIE OF THE GARRISON. 157 

before the soldiers could reach the streamlet, whose waters 
were more valued than those which flowed over the 
golden sands of Pactolus. The rainy season had already 
commenced, but it seemed to rain every where save upon 
the hill of Sombrero ; the clouds, as they hung above 
their heads, were watched with eager, upturned faces, 
pale with intense suffering ; the women brought the im- 
ages of their saints and besought of them that aid which 
God alone could bestow; the heavy masses of vapor 
discharging a few drops, passed onward, and bursting 
over the enemy's camp, deluged it with plenteous show- 
ers. A few miles off, the sufferers beheld the lake of 
Lagos ; its cool ^vaters, glistening in the sun, seemed to 
mock their agony. Several of the Mexicans, unable to 
endure the horrors of the siege, deserted from the fort. 
The enemy, who could look down upon them from a 
neighboring height, were acquainted with the condition 
of the besieged, and kept up a galling fire from their 
cannon and a company of light troops posted among 
the rocks. Mina had placed a red flag upon the highest 
pinnacle of the fortress as a signal of his intention to 
hold out to the last. Some of Linan's officers, who had 
formerly enjoyed the friendship of the patriot, sought 
an interview with him, and endeavored to persuade him 
to yield; pointing to the flag which floated on the hill, 
he expressed his resolution to conquer or to die in the 
struggle to which he had devoted himself. On the night 
of the 8th Mina made a sortie at the head of two hun- 
dred and forty men, and attacking Negrete's position, 
carried the redoubt behind which he was intrenched ; 
but a portion of his troops refused to advance, and he 
was forced to retire before a heavy fire, leaving several 
killed and wounded on the ground. The next day the 
latter were taken in front of the fort and strangled by the 
orders of the royalist commander.* In the meantime 

* Memoirs. 



158 THE GARRISON OFFER TO CAPITULATE. 

the provisions of the garrison were consumed, and the 
pangs of hunger were added to those of thirst. The 
treacherous Torres failed to send the promised supplies, 
and seemed determined to leave the patriots of Sombrero 
to their fate. He had made one attempt to relieve them, 
but falling into an ambush near Silao, his men were 
routed and cut to pieces. 

About the middle of August, Mina left the fortress 
in the night for the purpose of procuring food for his 
famishing followers. He was accompanied by the cav- 
alry of his division, under Captains Borjia and Ortez. 
He soon raised the necessary supplies, and attempted to 
throw them into the fort, but without success, as every 
avenue swarmed with the hostile troops. The besieged, 
reduced to the last extremity, killed their horses, asses, 
and even their dogs, and greedily devoured them. The 
murmurs of the women, and the cries of the children, 
expiring from thirst, were more terrible than the thunder 
of the enemy's cannon. Some of the men became de- 
lirious, and resorted to the last, and most disgusting ex- 
pedient in order to quench their burning thirst. 

In this condition of affairs, Colonel Young, who com- 
manded in Mina's absence, sent a flag to General Linan, 
offering terms of capitulation. The envoy returned witli 
the ultimatum of the royalist, which was that the fo- 
reigners must surrender at discretion. The Mexicans 
were offered the royal pardon. The sufferings of the 
women and children softened even the hearts of the 
enemy, who permitted them to descend into the ravine, 
but forbid their carrying water to the garrison. The 
ammunition of the fort M'^as almost exhausted ; for sev- 
eral days they had loaded their guns with the enemy's 
shot, dug out from the side of the hill. The wall which 
protected the main entrance was battered down, and a 
fair breach made in the works. 

On the 18th of August, Linan again attempted to 



DEATH OF COLONEL YOUNG. 159 

storm the fortress. At noonday his infantry, provided 
with scaling ladders, advanced in three columns upon 
the northern, eastern, and southern sides of the hill; 
their bugles sounded the charge, and a black flag, the 
symbol of extermination, w^as displayed in their midst. 
The garrison, reserving their fire, greeted them, when 
close to the walls, with a discharge of cannon and mus- 
ketry that sent them back in confusion. A heavy fall of 
rain rendering the guns useless, the enemy again ad- 
vanced to the breach ; but the shower had passed before 
they reached the walls, and they were a second time 
repulsed with great slaughter. In the last attack. Colonel 
Young, the gallant commandant of the fort, was killed 
while cheering his men to the fight. The stench of the 
dead bodies that lay around, exposed to a tropical sun, 
now rendered the atmosphere too poisonous to be inhaled 
with safety, and the vultures that hovered above the fatal 
hill were impatient to begin their horrid banquet. The 
hospital was filled with the sick and wounded ; scarcely 
a hundred men remained who were able to perform their 
duty. To attempt a longer defence of the fortress would 
have been madness. Lieutenant Colonel John Davis 
Bradburn, who now assumed the command, determined 
to evacuate the place as soon as possible. 

On the night of the 19th of August, 1817, the patriots, 
now reduced to a few miserable wretches, issued from the 
fort, and leaving their wounded comrades behind, they 
descended into the barranca. The hill was wrapped in 
darkness ; not a star shone above to light them on their 
way ; all was silent as the tomb as the fugitives felt their 
passage down the precipitous sides of the ravine. The 
gleam of the enemy's watch-fii*es, and the drowsy call of 
the sentinel, alone indicated the proximity of the foe. 
As they w^ere pressing onward, the silence which pre- 
vailed was suddenly interrupted by the screams of women 
and children, followed by the rattling of musketry, and 



160 FALL OF SOMBRERO. 

the groans of the wounded and dying. Seized with a 
panic, the soldiers threw down their weapons and fled, 
they knew not whither ; some of them, bewildered in the 
darkness, crawled back to the fatal hill, and were taken 
by the enemy ; others, as the day broke, found themselves 
upon the opposite side of the barranca ; but the royalists 
were on the alert, and many of them were ridden down, 
or sabred by their cavalry. A few fortunate individuals, 
favored by a dense fog, made their escape. 

General Linan, entering Sombrero, ordered the wound- 
ed to be put to death ; and after forcing the prisoners to 
demolish the works that remained, he disposed of them 
in the same cruel manner. On the 22d, the Spanish 
general retired to Villa de Leon in triumph.* 

* Memoirs of the Mexican Revolution. 



CHAPTER VI. 

MiNA Recruits another Corps — Capture of Bichoco and San Luis — 
Skirmishing with Orrantia — Linan Besieges Los Remedios — Bom- 
bardment of the Fort — Night Attack upon Guanajuato — Cowardice 
of the Soldiery — Conflagration of the Valenciana Mine — Perfidy 
of a Mexican Priest — Mina is Surprised and Captured by Orran- 
tia — Barbarity of that Officer — Closing Scene of Mina's Life — 
Bombardment of Remedios Renewed — Conflicts between the Hos- 
tile Forces — Abandonment of the Fort — Horrible Cruelty of the 
Victors — Surrender of Jauxilla to the Enemy — Noble Conduct of 
a Spanish Leader. 

While these events were in progress at Sombrero, 
Mina, unable to relieve the garrison, marched to Los 
Remedios, where he found his compatriot, Torres, busily- 
engaged in preparing his stronghold for a siege. Moved 
by the earnest solicitations of the former, the padre raised 
a considerable body of cavalry, and placed them at his 
disposal. These troops were destitute of discipline, and 
armed and equipped as it suited their individual fancies :. 
some carried lances of formidable dimensions ; others 
escopetas, lassos, and long knives, with which they didi 
terrible execution when engaged at close quarters ; their 
horses, badly kept and trained, made scarcely as gallant 
an appearance as themselves : 

" A set of mounted scarecrows, 
So bare, so withered, famished in the march, 
Their executors, the greedy crows, 
Flew o'er their heads, impatient for 
Their lean inheritance." 
11 (1613 



162 SIEGE OF LOS REMEDIOS. 

Mina endeavored to reduce this motley force to some kind 
of order ; he formed them into three squadrons ; those 
armed with escopetas, or carbines, were formed into an 
advance and rear guard ; those provided with lances 
were placed in the centre. 

The patriot left Los Remedios toward the end of 
August, at the head of nine hundred men, for the pur- 
pose of cutting off the communication between the army 
under Linan and the southern provinces. His first move- 
ment was against Bicocho, a fortified position, which he 
took by storm, and put a portion of the garrison to the 
sword. From thence he marched to the village of San 
Luis de la Paz, then occupied by the enemy. As the 
division advanced, the royalists took possession of the 
church and the adjoining cemetery, which was sur- 
rounded by a wall and ditch, crossed by a drawbridge. 
Dismounting his cavalry, Mina ordered them to the 
assault ; but unused to this kind of warfare, they recoiled 
before the fire of the enemy, and took shelter behind some 
ruined houses, where they remained, in defiance of the 
threats and commands of their leader. Determined to 
capture the place, Mina opened a covered ^vay from the 
ruins to the ditch, and, gaining the drawbridge, the ro}^- 
alists surrendered. Three of the prisoners were put to 
death ; the rest were liberated upon parole. 

The general next threatened San Miguel el Grande, 
but learning that Don Francisco Orrantia was marching 
toward him with a strong force, he dismissed a part of 
his guerillas, and hovering upon the enemy's rear, he 
annoyed them until they entered Irapuato. He then 
retired to the town of Santiago, where he had appointed 
a rendezvous. 

In the meanwhile Linan, having received reinforce- 
ments, advanced against Los Remedios, and commenced 
the siege on the last day of August. This fortress was 
situated upon a lofty height, overlooking the plain of 



SIEGE OF LOS REMEDIOS. 163 

Silao ; it was thirty-six miles from the city of Guanajuato, 
and fifty-four from Sombrero. The regular entrance to 
the place was by a gateway, defended by cannon, and 
flanked by precipices of frightful depth. From this point, 
which was called La Cueva, the place was rendered 
inaccessible until the road reached a battery above, called 
Santa Rosalia; a wall extended from the latter to the 
summit of the hill, which was crowned by a breastwork 
and two pieces of ordnance ; between the gate and the 
pinnacle of the fort were two other batteries, mounted 
with one and two guns ; near the breastwork was another 
passage, which led to the plain ; in the fort was a well, 
containing an ample supply of water, and the magazines 
were filled to overflowing with provisions ; a large num- 
ber of sheep, swine, and horned cattle, had been collected 
by the provident Torres from the adjacent ranches; the 
garrison consisted of fifteen hundi-ed soldiers, which, to- 
gether with the laborers who had been engaged in re- 
pairing the works, and the women and children, swelled 
the besieged to three thousand souls. 

The enemy encamped on the plain in front of the 
fortress, and taking possession of the adjoining heights, 
erected a battery of five guns upon one, which commanded 
the highest point of the works. Below this on the side of 
the hill, they planted several pieces of heavy cannon 
which raked the defences from the gateway to the summit. 
Their light troops occupied every available position upon 
the opposite verge of the precipice, from whence they 
annoyed the besieged whenever they exposed themselves. 
The thunder of great ordnance, and the sharp rattle of 
musketry proclaimed that the enemy had completed his 
preparations. The patriots answered their fire with 
spirit, and for several days the hills re-echoed with the 
sullen roar of the conflict. Notwithstanding the energy 
with which he pom-ed in his fire, Linan discovered at the 
end of a fortnight, that he had made but a slight impression 



164 REPULSE OF LIN AN. 

upon the fort. Becoming impatient, he resolved to attempt 
an assault. On the 20th of September his colmnns advanc- 
ed toward the wall under cover of a tremendous discharge 
of heavy missiles. They were met by the garrison, and 
after a gallant contest of three hours they were repulsed 
with a severe loss. The royalist commander next at- 
tempted to blow up the works, but the mine exploded and 
killed the engineers. His guns having effected a breach 
in the wall which stretched along the side of the hill, he 
endeavored to enter it at the point of the bayonet, but 
without success ; the besieged displaying a phalanx more 
impenetrable than the firmest rampart. Drawing off his 
troops, Linan retired to his camp, mortified by the issue of 
his enterprise. The patriots elated with their victory, sallied 
out in the night, and assailing the besiegers in front and rear, 
drove them from an intrenchment, and spiked the cannon 
which had threatened the destruction of some of their best 
defences. Linan who had learned to respect the valor of 
his adversaries, contented himself with keeping up a heavy 
fire, and carefully guarding against a surprise from JVIina, 
who was intercepting his supplies, and cutting off all his 
resources, passing here and there with the rapidity of a 
veteran guerilla. 

On the 10th of October, Orrantia left his cantonments 
at Irapuata, and advanced to the hacienda of La Caja, 
then occupied by Mina, with a force of eleven hundred 
men. The place was surrounded by a wall, having a 
small gate upon one side ; posting a part of his men here, 
and another upon an eminence in the rear, Mina placed 
his main body on either hand of the road in a field of corn. 
Orrantia attacking the party at the gate drove them within, 
and entering after them took up a position in the enclo- 
sure. The patriot leader now charged with two hundred 
and fifty men ; at this moment a squadron of cavalry came 
up and the rear guard becoming alarmed, turned and fled, 
leaving their chief alone, who was forced, however reluc- 



ATTACK ON GUANAJUATO. 165 

tantly to retire, or to fight against overwhelming numbers. 
Learning from some inhabitants of Guanajuato who were 
of the patriot party, that the enemy received a large 
portion of their supplies from that city, General Mina 
resolved to capture that ancient and opulent town. He 
communicated his design to Torres, who disapproved of it, 
asserting that the only way to raise the siege of Remedios 
was to attack the Spanish camp. From the small number 
of troops at his disposal, and the strength of the enemy's 
position, Mina was not prepared to risk an engagement 
with Linan, and therefore declared his intention of carrying 
out his original purpose. Torres, rejoiced at the opportunity 
of thwarting the man he hated, ordered his satellites to 
withdraw their forces unless an assault was made upon 
the besiegers. Closely followed by Orrantia, the patriot 
leader reached La Mina de la Luz on the night of the 23d 
of October, It was a solitary spot among the mountains ; 
here he was joined by a reinforcement which swelled his 
force to thirteen hundred cavalry and one hundred infantry. 
The city of Guanajuato is situated on the Sierra Santa 
Rosa; it was founded in 1545, and invested with the privi- 
leges of a city in 1741. Its population at the time of 
Mina's attempt upon it, was about thirty-five thousand 
souls. Near it w^ere some of the most productive mines 
of Mexico; from 1756 to 1803, it was computed that they 
yielded one hundred and sixty-five millions of piastres. 

Surrounded by lofty and rugged mountains, the city is 
concealed from view until you enter the defile of Marfil. 
The streets are narrow and tortuous, following the wind- 
ings of the ravine in which it is built. A stream of water 
flows through the town, which sometimes rises to a dan- 
gerous elevation. 

Descending the heights about eleven o'clock, the ad- 
vance of Mina's division entered the defile, halting until 
the main body came up ; they moved on in silence, only 
interrupted by the sentinels calling out the deota. About 



166 TREACHERY OF A PRIEST. 

midnight, they surprised and captured an outpost, but not 
before the alarm was given. The garrison of the place 
opened a fire upon them, which, owing to the darkness, 
did no great mischief. Mina ordered his men to press on; 
but, instead of obeying, they stood irresolute, insensible to 
the entreaties or commands of their leader. Daylight 
found them in this position, and fearing the advance of 
Orrantia, Mina was forced to retreat. He dismissed his 
followers in disgust, after bitterly reproaching his officers, 
to whose cowardice he attributed his failure. 

During the retreat. Captain Encarnacion Ortiz ascended 
the heights, and in imitation of he that " fired the Ephe- 
sian dome," wantonly set fire to the works of the famous 
Valenciana mines, which yielded an annual revenue of 
half a million of dollars. This act of Vandalism provoked 
the general, one of whose fixed principles it was, to re- 
spect the property of private individuals. Retaining a 
small escort, Mina retired to the rancho of El Venadito, — 
then occupied by his friend Don Mariano Herrera, whose 
estates had been laid waste by Orrantia, and who had 
been obliged to ransom his life by the payment of twenty 
thousand dollars. These injuries served to confirm his 
hatred toward the minions of the ungrateful prince who 
ruled the destinies of his country. 

As Mina passed through a small pueblo, he was saluted 
by the village priest, who inquired his destination. Aware 
of the treacherous character of the brotherhood, he respect- 
fully evaded the question. The padi-e, suspecting his 
route, mounted his mule in haste, and posting to Silao, in- 
formed Orrantia of the probable termination of his march. 
When Mina arrived at the rancho, he ordered his cavalry 
to turn their horses into the fields, and to encamp upon a 
small plain in advance of the farm-house. 

It had always been the custom of the general to share 
the hardships of his men, in camp and bivouac, but this 
night he slept apait from them in the dwelling of his 



EXECUTION OF MINA. 167 

friend. At tlie dawn of day, on the 27th of October, 1817, 
Orrantia entered the retired valley in which the unsus- 
pecting patriots were reposing, and charging upon them 
with his squadrons, put them to flight. Awakened by the 
noise, Mina rushed, half-dressed and unarmed, from the 
house, and perceived his followers flying in all directions, 
pursued by the enemy. He endeavored to rally them; — 
careless of his own danger, he was calling to them to halt, 
when he was overtaken by a dragoon, and forced to yield 
himself into the hands of his deadly foes. Orrantia, 
elated by his success, could not refrain from insulting him, 
and even forgot himself so far as to beat his unarmed and 
pinioned prisoner with his sword !* 

" I regret," said the fallen chief, " being a prisoner, but 
to fall into the hands of one regardless of his character as 
a soldier and a Spaniard, renders the misfortune doubly 
keen." 

Fourteen of Mina's escort were taken and massacred 
upon the spot; among these was Don Pedro Moreno, the 
former commandant of Sombrero, whose head was stricken 
from his body and raised upon a pole. Mina was carried 
to Silao, where he was treated as no brave man would 
treat a gallant enemy. Shortly afterwards, he was sent 
to Linan's camp, before Remedios. The capture of the 
distinguished rebel was regarded by the government as 
the most important event of the war. Te Deums were 
sung in the churches, illuminations, bon-fires, and volleys 
of cannon proclaimed the triumph of the royalists through- 
out the land. 

On the 11th of November, 1817, Mina, attended by a 
guard, advanced with an undaunted bearing to the place 
of execution; and charging the soldiers to take good aim, 
he added, calmly, " Do not let me suffer." The signal was 
given, and the soul of the gallant warrior, rudely divorced 

* Memoirs of the Revolution. 



168 ASSAULT ON LOS REMEDIOS. 

from his body, took its flight into the regions of the un- 
known future. When the tidings of Mina's fall reached 
Spain, Ferdinand rewarded the dragoon who had captured 
him with a pension, decorated Linan and Orrantia with 
military crosses, and created Apodaca Conde del Venadito. 

The siege of Remedios had now continued two months 
and a half, and still the place held out in defiance of a 
constant fire poured into its defences. Throwing the 
whole weight of their shot upon the curtain that extended 
from Santa Rosalia to the breastwork upon the summit of 
the hill, the enemy succeeded in making a breach in it, on 
the morning of the 16th of November. Calling out to the 
besieged, to " confess themselves, for their hour was come," 
the royalists, about noon, advanced, in four divisions, 
against the gateway at La Cueva, the breastwork, and the 
breach in the wall. In front of their columns, the ominous 
black flag waved its gloomy folds, announcing to the gar- 
rison their fate, if they were vanquished. 

Protected by their batteries, the assailants marched up 
boldly in the face of a scathful discharge of grape and 
musketry, until within twenty paces of the walls, when 
they paused. A few desperately brave spirits, throwing 
themselves in front, leaped into the breach, and were 
transfixed upon the bayonets of the besieged. Among 
those who thus devoted themselves, was the officer who 
bore the black ensign. Begrimed with smoke and powder, 
with unshaven beards, and bloodshot eyes lit up with the 
fierce passions that moved them, the patriots, like so many 
devils, charged through the broken wall, and falling upon 
the Spanish infantry, as they stood irresolute, drove them 
in confusion down the hill. As they descended in disorder, 
the peons and women of the fort rolled huge rocks upon 
their heads, crushing and mutilating many of the fugitives 
struggling through the narrow pass. The sides of the 
barranca were covered Avith the dead and wounded, 
.amounting to more than three hundred and fifty men. 



ABANDONMENT OF THE FORT. 169 

The defenders of the fortress also suffered severely in this 
attack. Fearful that his army would become completely 
demoralized, if they sustained such another defeat, General 
Lanan again endeavored to blow up the works, but met 
with no great success. Resuming his cannonading with 
vigor, the enemy wasted five or six weeks in the fruitless 
effort to batter down the stronghold. 

At the close of December, the besieged discovered, to 
their consternation, that their stock of ammunition was 
nearly expended. In order to obtain a supply, a party of 
three hundred men sallied from the fort in the night, and, 
storming the hostile batteries, returned in triumph. The 
place had now held out four months ; Mina slept with the 
dead; his dispersed followers could render them no assist- 
ance in raising the siege ; their hospital was filled with 
wounded; their ammunition was exhausted, and the only 
hope of salvation was to evacuate the position without 
delay. 

It is the custom of the Mexicans, when passing the 
watchword at night, to cry out at the top of their voices — 
" centinela alertay The last note of this is usually pro- 
longed into a dismal howl, not unlike that of a Avolf, and 
can be heard at a great distance. This practice was dis- 
continued by the besieged, so that its absence might not 
be remarked after they had left the fort ; it unfortunately 
had the effect of arousing the suspicions of the enemy. 
On the night of the 1st of January, 1818, the inhabitants 
of Remedios, men, w^omen, and children, assembled at the 
breastwork, near the summit of the hill; and after bidding 
adieu to their wounded friends, whom they were compelled 
to leave behind, they filed through the narrow passage and 
groped their way in utter darkness down the heights. 
The advance guard coming suddenly upon a picket placed 
directly in their path, they were obliged to force a pas- 
sage by pouring a volley of musketry into the ranlcs of 
those who opposed them. The alarm was instantly 



170 MASSACRE OF THE GARRISON. 

given to the Avhole camp. Their bugles and drums echoed 
through the ravines ; suddenly the darkness was dispersed 
by large fires, which blazed up on all sides, lighting up the 
rugged precipices, and throwing a lurid glare over the de- 
serted fortress and the adjoining hills, revealing the flying 
patriots to their pursuers, who fell upon them and cut them 
down without mercy; the shrill cry of women, and the 
shrieks of men, mingled with the roll of musketry, as the 
poor victims plead for quarter. Choking up the barranca 
in their efforts to escape, they trampled upon each other; 
while from the heights above, volley after volley was dis- 
charged into the struggling mass. Those who were yet 
upon the hill were charged upon by the enemy's bayonets, 
and fell headlong from the precipice, crushing their com- 
panions in their fall. 

All at once, a piercing yell arose, which drowned all 
other sounds ; and looking back upon the hill of Remedios, 
the fugitives who survived beheld the fortress wrapped in 
a sheet of flame. The royalists had set the place on fire, 
and the hospital, filled Mdth their wounded comrades, was 
consuming before their eyes. As the poor wretches at- 
tempted to extricate themselves from the conflagration, 
they were thrust back into the flames by their pitiless ad- 
versaries, whose exulting shouts, as they danced around 
the burning pile, proclaimed their demoniacal joy. As the 
day dawned upon this dreadful scene, its light revealed a 
shocking spectacle, disgraceful to humanity. The ravine, 
the neighboring hills, and the plain, were covered with the 
bodies of the fugitives. The women who had been cap- 
tured, were given up to the soldiery, and consigned to a 
fate more horrible than death; while the men were shot 
down like dogs, some of them shouting as they fell, Viva 
la Republica! 

Misfortunes never come alone, but follow each other 
like the waves of the sea, whose shores are covered with 
the wrecks of many a noble enterprise. The capture of 



SURRENDER OF JAUXILLA. 171 

Los Remedios was followed by that of Jauxilla. This 
fortress was situated in the midst of a small lake, and its 
defences were sufficiently strong to hold out against any 
ordinary force. It was besieged by a division of one thou- 
sand men, under Colonel Matius y Aguirre, one of the few 
royalist leaders who retained the feelings of a gentleman, 
during the demoralizing scenes of the civil wars. The 
fortress was defended with energy and perseverance for a 
period of three months; its garrison consisted of a mere 
handful of men, among whom were two Americans and 
the members of the patriot junta. It was not until they 
began to suffer the want of ammunition and food, that 
they listened to the terms of capitulation offered by Aguirre, 
which were both honorable and liberal. After the surren- 
der of the place, the prisoners were disarmed and liberated. 
The two Americans were with difficulty saved from death 
by the Spanish leader, who nobly exerted himself in their 
behalf with the government of Mexico, and MTung a reluc- 
tant assent to his earnest entreaties from the Viceroy. 



B K V. 



CHAPTER I. 

Dispersion of the Guerillas — Exploits of El Giro — Appointment of 
Arago to the Supreme Command — Death of Lieutenant Wolfe — 
Guerrero entrenches himself on the Pacific — Pacification of Mexi- 
co — End of the War — Treaty of 1819 — Permission granted for 
Anfflo-Americans to Settle in the Mexican Territory. 

The fall of Mina, and the massacre of Los Remedios, 
followed by the surrender of Jauxilla, completed the 
triumph of the Mexican government. The patriots, driven 
from their strongholds, retired to the mountains, and con- 
cealed themselves among inaccessible rocks and yawning 
barrancas. Occasionally small parties of them would 
descend into the plain, and falling upon an unprotected 
village, pillage its inhabitants, and retire with their booty 
to the hills. Among those who distinguished themselves 
in this kind of warfare were Torres, and Andreas Delgado, 
known by the sobriquet of El Giro. The latter was an 
Indian, full of fire and energy, and had displayed no or- 
dinary talents as a guerilla captain. Torres still hovered 
near his dismantled fortress, exercising his usual tyranny 
over the people within his jurisdiction, burning villages 
and haciendas at pleasure, and even slaying such of his 
partisans whose fidelity he suspected. He was closely 

(173) 



174 INTRIGUES OF TORRES. 

pursued by the royalists, who were, however, unable to 
capture the cunning priest. 

In April, 1818, the patriot Junta met at the pueblo 
of Puruandiro, and held a formal consultation with the 
military chiefs of their party. General Torres was de- 
nounced before the assembly, and degraded from his rank 
as commander-in-chief of the forces, and commandant- 
general of Guanajuato. Don Juan Arago, formerly an 
aid-de-camp to Mina, was appointed in his stead. Torres 
retired from the town resolving to support his claims by 
a resort to arms. On the 28th of April, as he ^was march- 
ing across the country at the head of fifteen hundred men, 
he encountered a party of four hundred royalists near 
the rancho of Frijoles ; the padre, putting spurs to his 
horse instantly fled, followed by his cavalry, leaving a 
small body of infantry, under Lieutenant "Wolfe, to fight 
their way through the enemy ; retiring to the shelter of 
a wood, they defended themselves with desperate courage, 
until every man was slain but one. Colonel Bustamente, 
who commanded the royalists, allowed his men to sever 
the head of Wolfe from his body, and bear it before them 
as a trophy of their victory. 

During the summer of 1818, Torres, by his intrigues, 
fomented dissensions among the patriot leaders, Avho, 
arrayed against each other, were unable to resist the 
enemy, whose troops now occupied the whole country. 
Several rencounters took place between Arago and Tor- 
res, who was assisted by Ortiz and Borjia; the latter 
was always worsted. In September, the royalist cut off 
the padi'c's supplies, and he was compelled to resign his- 
pretensions ; and thenceforth he lived in obscurity, under 
the protection of his former officer, Encarnacion Ortiz. 

The affairs of the patriots continued to decline ; the 
government troops prevented the junction of the few 
partisan corps yet in the field. El Giro Avas routed, taken 
prisoner, and shot. Arago was destitute of resources, 



LARxl MARCHES AGAINST THE REBELS. 175 

and compelled to abandon his plans for meeting the 
enemy. The only leader that seemed superior to the for- 
tune of his compatriots was Don Vicente Guerrero, who 
having retired from the mountains of the Misteca before 
a superior force, entered the Tierra Caliente of Valla- 
dolid. In November, with a party of eighty men, he 
attacked a division of four hundred royalists, and put 
them to rout. His boldness and decision insured his 
success, and he soon obtained possession of a greater 
part of the province. The Viceroy dispatched a pow- 
erful force against Guerrero under General Negrete, who 
advanced to the Rio Zacatula, upon the bank of which 
the patriots were encamped. Afraid of crossing the 
stream, both armies remained opposite each other for 
some time, when the enemy began to suffer from the 
pestilential atmosphere of the swamps which surrounded 
their camp, and were obliged to retreat to the city of Val- 
ladolid. Guerrero, whose force was daily increasing, 
continued to hold the country on the Pacific in defiance of 
government. In the month of February, the junta was 
surprised by a hostile party, and the president, Don Jose 
Pagola, and his secretary were taken prisoners, and put to 
death. The revolutionary chiefs retired to the Zacatula, 
where they continued to exercise their functions under the 
protection of Guerrero. 

Colonel Bradburn,who had escaped from the disasters 
which had overtaken his companions, had sought a shelter 
in the defile of Huango, north of the capital of Valla- 
dolid; where in conjunction with General Huesta, he 
organized a division of infantry. The latter from a feeling 
of jealousy refused to furnish Bradburn with a full supply 
of arms, and he was compelled to hold his position during 
the winter of 1818, with a hundred men. In March, 1819, 
General Lara marched against him with fifteen hundred 
troops. Bradburn fled to the mountains, but was pm-sued 
and his force was cut to pieces ; their leader escaped with 



176 FLORIDA CEDED TO UNITED STATES. 

a small remnant of his division. Huesta,who had a body 
of four hundred cavalry under his command at the time, 
w^as also forced to retire from the field w^ithout even strik- 
ing a blow. Of the whole of Mina's followers there 
were not more than half a dozen individuals who still 
lived. All had been removed either by the sword, disease, 
or famine. During the year 1819, but few events of in- 
terest transpired in Mexico, but such as have been related. 
The whole country was in the hands of the government; 
every town, hacienda, and pueblo in the revolted pro- 
vinces, \vas garrisoned by the king's troops, except that 
portion of Valladolid occupied by Guerrero. The mongrel 
population, disheartened by the disasters which had befal- 
len their leaders, sunk back into the servile condition they 
had formerly held. But the pause which had succeeded 
the turmoil of civil strife, was but the deceitful lull in 
the tempest, which ere long was to burst forth, and sweep 
from the land every vestige of Spanish power. The Mexi- 
cans in their contests with the royalists had perceived the 
weakness of Spain, which like a decrepit veteran, uncon- 
scious of the loss of power, still grasped the sword in her 
trembling hands, and endeavored to punish her rebellious 
children, who despising her feeble efforts, laughed her 
impotent threats to scorn. 

It was during this period of apparent pacification, that 
Spain ceded Florida to the United States, by a treaty 
signed at Washington, February 22d, 1819, by Don Luis 
de Onis, and John Q. Adams. At the same time the boun- 
dary between Mexico and the territory of Louisiana was 
settled, by the negotiators agreeing to recognize the river 
Sabine as the limit between the respective countries. By 
this treaty, the United States voluntarily surrendered the 
claims they undoubtedly possessed upon the province of 
Texas, that country having formed a portion of the territory 
of Louisiana when it was ceded to the States by the treaty 



EXCLUSIVE POLICY OF SPAIN. 177 

of Paris in 1803.* As early as the year 1805, General 
Wilkinson, the commander-in-chief of the American forces 
in the south-west, had consented to recognize the Sabine 
as the military boundary between the Spanish colonies and 
the domain of the republic. Wilkinson acted in this affair 
upon his own responsibility, and had no more right to de- 
fine the limits of Louisiana than he had those of Peru. 
Yet to this error of the American general may be referred 
the difficulties which have given rise to the Texan revolu- 
tion, and Avhich has since plunged Mexico into a ruinous 
and sanguinary war with her former friend and ally of the 
north. 

vShortly after the conclusion of the treaty of Washing- 
ton, Moses Austin applied to the viceregal government of 
Mexico for a grant of land for the purpose of founding a 
colony of Americans in the wilderness of Texas. Through 
the influence of the Baron de Bastrop, then residing at 
Bexar, Austin obtained the grant with permission to settle 
three hundred families upon certain conditions. The grant 
was obtained January 17th, 1821; a few days after its 
reception Austin died, and his son Stephen F. Austin 
prosecuted the enterprise. In July the latter entered 
Texas and explored the country, and in December of the 
same year began a settlement on the Brazos river. 

It had ever been the policy of Spain to exclude 
foreigners from her transatlantic possessions ; nor were 
her rulers unaware of the danger her colonies were 
exposed to by their contiguity to the American States. 
General Salcedo is said to have expressed a desire to 
prevent even the birds from flying across the frontier 
between the two countries, lest the Mexicans should be- 
come infected with the political sentiments of their neigh- 
bors. The fact of Austin's obtaining his grant was an 
indication of the weakness of the parent state, or the 

* Marbois' History of Louisiana. 
12 



178 SPREAD OF LIBERAL PRINCIPLES, 

spread of liberal principles ; for there is no instance in 
the history of nations of a free people voluntarily sub- 
jecting themselves to the will of a despot by emigrating 
to his territories. Mexico had already assumed an inde- 
pendent position ; and it would have been as easy to have 
extinguished the fires of Orizava or Popocatepetl, with 
the snows upon their summits, as to have impeded the 
onward progress of the revolution, when once begun : 
" The people," says the profound Sally, " never revolt in 
jest, but always with good and sufficient reason." 



CHAPTER II. 

Revolution in Spain — Its effect upon Mexico — Preparations of the 
Viceroy — Opposition of the Clergy to the Decree of the Cortes 
ordering the Sequestration of the Church Property — Conspiracy 
of Iturbide — Plan of Iguaia — Spread of the Revolt — Apodaca is 
Deposed by his own Party — March of Victoria upon the Capital — 
Iturbide enters Puebla — Arrival of O'Donoju — Treaty of Cor- 
dova — Independence of Mexico. 

During the summer of 1820, intelligence was received 
in Mexico of the revolt of the Spanish army on the Isle 
of Leon, and the subsequent revolution, caused by the 
tyranny of the King ; and shortly afterwards the Viceroy 
received an order from the Cortes of Spain to proclaim 
the Constitution, to which Ferdinand had been compelled 
to swear, sorely against his will. Accompanying this 
mandate was a decree of the Cortes ordering the seques- 
tration of the property of the Mexican Church. A true 
subject to his prince, and an enemy to revolutions, Don 
Juan Apodaca resolved to resist the commands of the 
Cortes ; he accordingly hastened to levy troops through- 
out the country for the ostensible purpose of protecting 
it against the rebels, but in reality they were destined to 
keep the friends of the constitution in check. The op- 
position of the clergy being aroused by the impolitic 
decree, which threatened to deprive them of their hoarded 
treasures, the Viceroy soon found himself in a critical 
position. Aided by the Spanish generals, Apodaca pre- 
pared to sustain himself in the discharge of what he con- 

(179) 



180 DON AUGUSTIN ITURBIDE. 

ceived to be his duty toward his sovereign. The people 
of Mexico, who had received many injuries from the 
Cortes, were not disposed to declare in their favor. The 
native nobility and opulent Spaniards united with the 
Viceroy, and determined to support the king, and pre- 
serve his Mexican dominions as an asylum to which he 
could retire in future from the persecutions of his enemies. 
Thus the people, the clergy, and the aristocracy, were 
arrayed against the Cortes, each moved by a different 
motive. The Mexican bishops, with their usual selfish- 
ness, resolved to throw their influence in favor of the 
party upon whose protection they could rely in case the 
government should attempt to enforce the decree leveled 
at themselves. 

The officer vt^ho commanded the western division of 
the army at this crisis was General Armigo, who, being 
a staunch liberal, was of course a supporter of the con- 
stitution. The force under this personage occupied a 
position midway between the capital and the Pacific, and 
had been placed there to prevent the advance of Guer- 
rero, who had established himself at the Orilla de Zaca- 
tula, on the right bank of the river, a short distance from 
its mouth, where it empties into the ocean. Armigo was 
therefore recalled to Mexico, and in an evil hour Don 
Augustin Iturbide was appointed to succeed him. This 
individual had been the bitter enemy of the patriots, and 
had distinguished himself by his zeal and devotion to 
the viceregal government ; he had commanded the ad- 
vance guard of General Llano's army at the battle of 
Puruaran, in 1813, and contributed, in no slight degree, 
to overthrow the rebels in that campaign ; he had not, 
however, taken an active part in the late commotions 
which had distm-bed the tranquillity of the state, but had 
lived in the capital : "in a society not remarkable for 
strict morality, he was distinguished for his immorality :" 
his reputation was not without blemishes ; he had some 



THE PLAN OF IGUALA. 181 

talent, and was quick, bold and resolute in carrying out 
his schemes, and careless of the means he made use of to 
consummate his purposes. Such was the man in whose 
hands the destiny of Mexico was placed. 

Iturbide left Mexico in February, 1821, with orders to 
march against Guerrero, and crush him at a blow. He 
was also ordered to take charge of a quantity of the public 
treasure, amounting to half a million of dollars, which had 
been deposited at a place called Iguala, about a hundred 
and twenty miles from the capital. Before he departed for 
the army, Iturbide entered into a conspiracy with the 
clergy, and leaders of the patriot party, who had united 
against the government, and were determined to achieve 
the independence of Mexico, The rural priesthood were 
immediately set to work, and in conjunction with the 
agents of the conspirators, soon aroused the slumbering 
passions of the people. General Guerrero, who had been 
informed of the intended revolution, broke up his camp on 
the Zacatula, and marched to join Iturbide. The formerly 
hostile battalions arriving at Iguala, mingled together like 
the waters of two friendly streams, destined to flow 
thenceforth in one direction. 

On the 23d of February, 1821, Iturbide seized upon the 
treasure, and on the following day proposed to the revolu- 
tionary chiefs the political scheme known as the plan of 
Iguala. This document is as follows : 

" Article I. The Mexican nation is independent of the Spanish 
nation, and of every other, even upon its own continent. 

" Art. II. The religion shall be the Catholic, which all its inha- 
bitants profess. 

" Art. III. They shall be united without any distinctions be- 
tween Americans and Europeans. 

" Art. IV. The government shall be a constitutional monarchy. 

" Art. V. A Junta shall be named, consisting of individuals who 



182 THE PLAN OF IGUALA. 

enjoy the highest reputation in the different parties which have 
shown themselves. 

" Art. VI. This Junta shall be presided over by his excellency 
the Cond6 del Venadito, the present Viceroy of Mexico. 

" Art. VII. It shall govern in the name of the laws now in 
force, and its first duty shall be to convoke — according to such rules 
as it may deem expedient — a congress, for the formation of a consti- 
tution more suitable to the condition of the country. 

" Art. VIII. His majesty, Ferdinand VII., shall be invited to 
the throne of the empire, and in case of his refusal, the infantes Don 
Carlos and Don Francisco de Paula. 

" Art. IX. Should his majesty, Ferdinand, and his august bro- 
thers, decline the invitation, the nation is at liberty to invite to the 
imperial dignity any member of reigning families it may select. 

" Art. X. The formation of the constitution, and the oath of the 
emperor to observe it, must precede his entry into the country. 

" Art. XI. The distinction of castes is abolished, which was 
made by the Spanish law, excluding them from the rights of citi- 
zenship. 

" Art. XII. An army shall be organized for the maintenance of 
religion, independence, and union, guaranteeing these three princi- 
ples, it shall be called the Army of the Guarantees. 

" Art. XIII. It shall solemnly swear to defend the fundamental 
doctrines of this plan. 

"Art. XIV. It shall strictly observe the military ordinances 
now in force. 

" Art. XV. There shall be no other promotions than those due 
to seniority, or which shall be for the good of the service. 
" Art. XVI. This army shall be considered as of the line. 

" Art. XVII, The old partisans of independence who shall 
give in their adhesion to this plan, shall be received into this army. 

" Art. XVIII. The patriots and peasants who shall acknow- 
ledge the plan hereafter, shall be enrolled as militia. 

" Art. XIX. The secular and regular clergy shall be protected 
in their rights. 



STRENGTH OF THE PARTIES. 183 

" Art. XX. All the public functionaries — civil, military, eccle- 
siastical, and political — Avho adhere to the cause of independence, 
shall be continued in office, without distinction between Mexicans 
and Europeans. 

" Art. XXI. Those functionaries, of whatever degree or con- 
dition, who dissent from the cause of independence, shall be divested 
of their offices, and shall leave the territories of the empire, taking 
with them their families and effects. 

" Art. XXII. The military commandants shall be guided by 
general instructions in conformity with this plan, which shall be 
sent to them. 

" Art. XXIII. No accused person shall be put to death by the 
military commandants. Those accused of treason against the nation, 
which is the next greatest crime after that of treason against the 
Divine Ruler, shall be conveyed to the fortress of Barrabas, where 
they shall remain until the Congress shall decree the punishment 
which ought to be inflicted upon them. 

" Art. XXIV. It being indispensable to the welfare of the 
country that this plan should be carried into effect, inasmuch as the 
good of that country is its object, every individual of the army shall 
maintain it — if it be necessary — even to the shedding of the last drop 
of his blood!" 

This plan was approved by the leaders of the revolt 
assembled at Iguala, and copies of it were transmitted to 
all the commandants-general of the provinces, the officers 
of the different garrisons throughout Mexico, and to the 
Viceroy, and all the civil and ecclesiastical dignitaries. 
When the revolution began, the force under Iturbide was 
but eight hundred strong, while that at the disposal of 
the government consisted of eleven European regiments, 
seven veteran corps, and seventeen native regiments. 
The Viceroy also had possession of the revenues of the 
state; Iturbide, on the contrary, was destitute of all re- 
sources, excepting the treasure he had seized at Iguala, 
and those he counted would flow from the contributions 
of his partisans. In his communication to Apodaca, Itur- 



184 ITURBIDE'S SPEECH TO THE ARMY. 

bide informed him that Guerrero and his followers had 
accepted the act of amnesty, proclaimed by the govern- 
ment, and were therefore to be regarded as enemies no 
longer. 

On the ensuing 1st day of March, Iturbide, calling his 
officers together, submitted to them his future plans for 
carrying out the revolution so happily begun, and request- 
ing their support. His partisans hailed his schemes with 
shouts of applause, and besought him to lead them at 
once upon the capital. Iturbide, having secm-ed the of- 
ficers, had no difficulty in bringing over the soldiers to his 
cause. On the 2d of March the army solemnly swore 
to maintain the plan of Iguala. After this ceremony 
their leader addressed them to the following effect : 

" Soldiers, you have this day sworn to preserve the 
Catholic Apostolic Roman religion ; to protect the union 
of Europeans and Americans, to effect the independence 
of this empire ; and on certain conditions to obey the 
king. This act will be applauded by foreign nations ; 
and your services will be gratefully acknowledged by 
your fellow-citizens, and your names will be inscribed in 
the temple of immortality. Yesterday I refused the title 
of lieutenant-general you would have conferred upon me : 
to-day I renounce this distinction, (tearing from his sleeve 
the insignia of his rank as colonel.) To be ranked as 
your companion fills all my ambitious desires." 

The defection of Iturbide and the troops under his 
command filled the Viceroy with astonishment and alarm. 
But, recovering from his panic, he prepared for defence, 
resolving to defeat the plans of the traitors bj" marching 
against them before they became too formidable. He 
had now, however, to contend against an influence which 
had heretofore supported him through all the trials of his 
administration ; an influence more potent than that of 
the Cortes, the king, or the array of embattled hosts. 
The clergy now deserted him, and threw their weight into 



THE CLERGY SUPPORT ITURBIDE. 185 

the opposite scale. Through their intrigues the Viceroy 
was deposed, and Francisco Novella, an officer of artil- 
lery, was placed at the head of the government. This 
personage was unable to stay the rapid advance of the 
revolutionary movement, w^hich soon extended through- 
out the country : for, although the plan did not meet the 
peculiar views of all parties, yet the mass of the nation 
were too careless and ignorant to investigate its details or 
to examine its principles. It had met the approbation of 
their leaders and spiritual guardians, and they accepted it 
without scrutinizing its faults or demurring at its provi- 
sions. The Spaniards objected to the plan, because it 
provided for the establishment of a congress with power 
to control the monarch ; while the intelligent portion of 
the Creoles were dissatisfied with the prospect of receiv- 
ing a prince of the house of Bourbon as their ruler. 
The small number of these malcontents rendered their 
opposition harmless, and with the exception of a feeble 
show of resistance in some of the provinces, the revolu- 
tion was effected without bloodshed and almost without a 
dissenting voice. And in one short month the richest 
jewel in the crown of Spain was lost to her proud mo- 
narchs forever. 

The struggles through which the nation had passed 
during the last ten years, had doubtless prepared the 
Mexicans for the change which had so suddenly taken 
place. The revolution had been slowly advancing to- 
ward the point it had now reached, from the hour when 
Hidalgo, proclaiming death to the Spaniard, had fired the 
brand of civil war among the hills of Guanajuato. Earn- 
estly desiring to break the chains which bound them to 
the parent state, in whose councils they had no voice, 
from whose decrees there was no appeal, the people still 
determined to adhere to the family of their hereditary 
rulers, and while they defied the government they laid the 
crown of Mexico at the feet of the prince. The great 



186 BE APPEARANCE OF VICTORIA. 

secret of this revolution, so easily achieved, yet so impor- 
tant in its results, is to be referred to the decree of the 
Cortes against the property of the church. Iturbide was 
merely the instrument of the exasperated ecclesiastics of 
the viceroyalty, whose vengeance being aroused, were 
prepared to sacrifice the tranquillity of the country rather 
than submit to be robbed by the state. 

From Iguala, the armies of the Guarantees marched to 
the Baxio, where they received every hour an addition to 
their forces, both from the inhabitants of that fertile dis- 
trict and the guerillas of the neighboring hills. Among 
others who joined the revolt at this time, was Guadalupe 
Victoria, who had concealed himself in the mountains of 
Vera Cruz for the last five years, and now came forth like 
one arisen from the grave to witness the independence of 
his country. He gave in his adhesion to the plan, at San 
Juan del Rio, and was warmly greeted by the patriots, 
whose hearts he had won by his valor, activity, and devo- 
tion to their cause. To these virtues he added the impor- 
tant qualification of being a most enthusiastic Catholic, 
having ever been distinguished for his observance of the 
forms of the Romish ritual. Iturbide next advanced to the 
city of Queretaro, which opened its gates to receive him. 
At this place the revolutionary forces were formed into 
two divisions, one of which was placed under the com- 
mand of Victoria, with orders to march upon the capital. 
The other, led by the general-in-chief in person, moving 
rapidly to the south-east, appeared suddenly before Pue- 
bla de los Angeles, the second city in Mexico. The bish- 
op of the province being a partisan of the revolution, 
through his influence this place sm-rendered without a 
blow. 

In the meanwhile Novella suffered the revolt to take its 
course, scarcely making an eflbrt to resist its progress. 
The people of the capital anxiously awaited the advance 
of Victoria to hail him as their deliverer. The colors of 



ARRIVAL OF THE VICEROY. 187 

the three Guarantees became the fashion, and red, white, 
and green, were displayed openly in every street of the 
city, and in the great square under the windows of the 
Viceregal palace. In some of the towns the inhabitants 
carried their enthusiasm so far as to paint their houses 
with the popular colors. The affairs of Mexico were in 
this condition, when General Juan O'Donoju landed at 
Vera Cruz, in August, 1821, armed with powers to super- 
sede Apodaca as Viceroy. The government of Spain 
supposing that the disturbances had been quelled in the 
country, were unprepared to meet the crisis. O'Donoju 
was therefore utterly confounded when he learned that 
Mexico was not only revolutionized, but actually claimed 
to be an independent state. Unprovided with troops or 
money, the new Viceroy at once perceived the inutility of 
attempting to stem the current which set so strongly against 
the mother country. He found that the only course left 
for him to pursue was either to return to Spain, or to enter 
into negotiations with the revolutionary chief, whose troops 
were hourly increasing, and even then held possession of 
every avenue leading to the interior. In this dilemma 
O'Donoju determined to make the best of the peculiar cir- 
cumstances in which he was placed ; he doubtless had 
some knowledge of the instability of the Mexican character, 
or perhaps he had observed the singular mutations that so 
often occur in a revolutionary country where the masses, 
without a leading spirit to control their waywardness, or 
the light of a fixed principle to guide them through the 
turmoil of a political convulsion, often throw themselves 
in despair into the arms of the very power from which they 
had so eagerly sought to free themselves. General 
O'Donoju resolved to open a negotiation with Iturbide 
without delay. He began by issuing a manifesto to the 
people of Mexico, which was replete with liberal and gene- 
rous sentiments towards them, congratulating them upon 
the successful issue of the rebellion. This extraordinary 



188 ITURBIDE APPOINTED PRESIDENT. 

document emanating from that once dreaded personage, a 
Spanish Viceroy, whose predecessors were accustomed to 
assume the power and state of a sovereign prince, aston- 
ished, while it overjoyed the patriots who now beheld their 
triumph complete. O'Donoju was invited to meet the 
great conspirator and hold a solemn conference with him 
at Cordova, a town in the vicinity. The parties met, and 
after a brief and amicable discussion, a treaty was signed 
on the 24th of August, 1821, by Iturbide and O'Donoju; 
the latter well aware that the government of Spain would 
not sanction his unauthorized proceeding. In this treaty 
the Viceroy recognized the plan of Iguala, as the basis of the 
constitution of the future Mexican empire, which was de- 
clared a free and independent state, under that designation. 
It was further stipulated that commissioners should be 
dispatched to Spain immediately, to lay the imperial dia- 
dem at the feet of Ferdinand VII., or the other Bourbon 
\ princes, in case he refused to accept the proposal. 

In the interim, the country was to be governed by a 
junta, who were to nominate an executive. Of this 
junta, O'Donoju readily consented to become a member, 
and guaranteed the evacuation of the capital by the 
king's troops, who j^et maintained possession of the city. 
Persuaded by the Viceroy, who was the legal representa- 
tive of their sovereign, the garrison marched out with the 
honors of war, and encamped at Toluca. 

On the 27th of September, Iturbide and O'Donoju 
entered Mexico together, amid the joyful acclamations 
of the people, who hailed them as their deliverers. In 
accordance with the treaty of Cordova, a junta consisting 
of thirty-six persons was organized, by whom a regency 
of five members was appointed. The executive power 
was lodged in the latter branch of the government. Itur- 
bide was chosen president of it, with the additional title 
of admiral of the navy and generalissimo of the army. 
His annual salary was fixed at one hundred and twenty 



DEATH OF O'DONOJU. 189 

thousand dollars. At this crisis General O'Donoju died, 
to the great regret of all parties. His conduct had met 
the approbation of every patriot, and even challenged the 
admiration of the friends of the king. Those v^^ho wished 
the re-establishment of the old system, alone regarded 
him as an enemy, and did not scruple to denounce him 
as a traitor, both to the monarch and the Cortes of Spain. 



CHAPTER III. 

Difficulties of the New Government — Conspiracy of Bravo and Vic- 
toria — The Deputies swear to support the Plan — Factions in Con- 
gress — Intrigues of Iturbide — Financial difficulties of the Nation — 
Reduction of the Standing Army, and the increase of the Militia — 
Iturbide's Ambition — Nocturnal Tumult — Conduct of the Mexican 
Mob — Meeting of the Deputies — Election of the Emperor — The 
fifteen honest Representatives. 

The most important subject demanding the attention 
of the Provisional Government of Mexico, was the convo- 
cation of the Congress ; Itm-bide submitted a prqjet, in 
which it was proposed to divide that body into separate 
houses. The upper house was to be composed of twelve 
ecclesiastics, the same number of officers from the army 
of the Guarantees ; one member from the Ayuntamientos* 
of the different cities ; and one from each supreme court 
of judicature. The lower house was to consist of repre- 
sentatives to be chosen by the people in the ratio of one 
member for every fifty thousand souls. The junta rejected 
this plan, but adopted another in which the same pro- 
portion of representation to population was retained. 
It was also provided that in the event of any province 
having more than foui- deputies, one of them should be 
an ecclesiastic, one a military man, and one a civilian, in 
order that the whole body of the people might have a 
voice in the national councils. 

* Municipal Councils. 
(190) 



MEXICAN DEPUTIES. 191 

This organization of the government did not meet 
with the approbation of all the revolutionary chiefs, and a 
faction headed by Nicholas Bravo and Victoria conspired 
to force the junta to adopt the form of election prescribed 
by the Spanish constitution. This conspiracy was disco- 
vered, and Bravo, Victoria, and several of their accomplices 
were arrested, as they were about to carry their designs 
into effect, and consigned to a prison. 

The members of the junta were, with a few exceptions, 
elected deputies to the Congress which assembled at the 
capital on the 24th of February, 1822. Before taking their 
seats, the representatives marched in solemn procession to 
the great cathedral of Mexico, (which is built on the ruins 
of the temple of Mexitli), and there bound themselves by a 
sacred oath, to maintain inviolate the several articles of 
the plan of Iguala. As if determined to perjure them- 
selves beyond the hope of redemption, these worthy sena- 
tors confirmed their oath, by voting in favor of each 
separate article isolated from the body of the plan. 
This ceremony was succeeded by the solemn and impo- 
sing rites of the Roman Church, calculated to impress 
the minds of those who hold that faith with awe and 
reverence. Yet in spite of all this, these individuals did 
not scruple to break their oaths, almost before the ink had 
dried upon the parchment which recorded their infamy. 

Being duly installed in their seats, the members pro- 
ceeded to open the session in a formal manner; but such 
was the ignorance of this august body, that not one of 
them was conversant with the usual mode of conducting 
business in legislative assemblies ! This proved a serious 
obstacle to the dispatch of the many important questions 
submitted to their consideration. Remarkably ceremoni- 
ous in their social intercourse, the Mexican deputies spent 
week after week in discussing matters of etiquette, while 
the affairs of the government remained in the greatest dis- 
order. To increase the inefficiency of the Congress, it 



192 FACTIONS IN CONGRESS. 

soon became divided into factions, each one striving to at- 
tain the supremacy, in order to advance their own pecuHar 
views, under cover of measures brought forward for the 
pubHc good. The friends of Iturbide, who were devoted 
to their leader, wished to elevate him to the supreme au- 
thority, in order that they might share in the spoils of 
office, and the numberless favors of wealth and rank it 
would be in his power to bestow. The Bourbonists, on 
the contrary, were bitterly opposed to Itm'bide, and sin- 
cerely desirous of carrying out the stipulations of the plan 
of Iguala, particularly that part of it relating to the invest- 
ment of the power in the person of Ferdinand, or some 
prince of his royal house. There were many enlightened 
and patriotic men among the Bourbonists, who, aware of 
the ignorance of the masses, and the ambitious designs of 
the military chiefs, saw no hope of safety for the nation, 
but in a constitutional monarchy. 

The republican party were violently prepossessed in 
favor of a federal system of government, and boldly re- 
pudiated the plan, as the work of the military leaders, and 
not of the people, whose opinions had not been consulted 
until after the consummation of the revolution. This fac- 
tion was composed of enthusiastic and liberal-minded men, 
who fondly hoped that the hour had arrived when their 
Utopian dreams were about to be realized. They pointed 
in derision to the imbecile and dissolute king of Spain, and 
asked his partisans if he was one to be controlled by the 
impotent articles of a constitution, while he had the power 
of resisting its operation. The friends of Iturbide took no 
part in the debates between the other parties, unless one 
of them was upon the point of gaining the ascendency, 
when they would throw their whole weight into the scale 
of the minority, and thus defeat the favorite measures of 
either faction. The manoDuvres of the Iturbidists soon 
excited the suspicion of their colleagues, who, watching 
their conduct, penetrated their design of elevating the 



INTRIGUES OF ITURBIDE. lOS 

general-in-cliief to the supreme command. When the re- 
gency, or executive branch, met in consultation with the 
Congress, Iturbide assumed the speaker's chair. The 
members resisted this as an infringement of the privileges 
of the house, and he was compelled to retire, notwithstand- 
ing the strenuous efforts of his partisans to support his 
claims to the dignity. 

Iturbide withdrew to Tacubaya, with a division of the 
army, consisting of four thousand troops ; from this place, 
he issued several manifestoes against the legislature, com- 
plaining of their procrastinating policy, in not passing the 
measures demanded by the condition of the country. 
The regency were continually asking for supplies of 
money, which the Congress was not disposed to grant, ac- 
cusing the former of a wasteful expenditure of the public 
treasure. The intestine wars which had desolated Mexico 
for the last twelve years, had dried up all the usual sources 
of revenue, and left the nation without the means of 
meeting the exigencies of the state. The army had been, 
increased since the revolution, and the pay of the troops 
augmented. The general-in-chief received a hundred and 
twenty thousand dollars for his services; his father had 
been voted a pension of ten thousand; the ministers re- 
ceived eight thousand per annum, and the members of 
Congress three thousand. To meet these ordinary and the 
extraordinary expenses which were constantly accruing was 
impossible; and, in consequence of these financial difficul- 
ties, serious disturbances arose which threatened the over- 
throw of the government. The army had not been paid 
for some months, and the soldiery began to exhibit symp- 
toms of a mutinous and disorderly spirit. In order to 
increase the confusion which prevailed, Iturbide denounced 
the Congress, for neglecting to provide for the comfort of 
the " most meritorious part of the community," as he de- 
signated the military. The people became infected with 
the same seditious spirit, and the discontented loudly ex- 
13 



194 EL SENOR YANNEZ. 

claimed against the Congress for not enacting laws calcu- 
lated to promote the prosperity of the nation. The affairs 
■of the country were in this lamentable condition, when a 
conspiracy was formed in the royalist camp at Toluca, to 
effect a counter revolution in favor of the old system. 
The plot was fortunately discovered in time to prevent its 
execution, and measures were taken to defend the capital 
against the enemies of the government. 

On the 2d of April, Iturbide issued a proclamation de- 
claring the country was in danger, and calling upon Con- 
gress to assemble without delay. At an early hour on the 
following day, the legislature obeyed the summons, and 
demanded of the members of the Regency the cause of 
this alarm. Senor Yannez, one of the latter body, denied 
all knowledge of the affair, and protested against the con- 
duct of the general-in-chief, in using the names of his 
colleagues without their authority, accusing him of arroga- 
ting powers which did not belong to him, and of attempting 
to govern the nation by his own will. Itm'bide retorted 
by denouncing Yannez as a traitor to the state, and an 
enemy to him personally. He afterwards accused several 
other deputies of the same crime, but upon investigating 
the charges preferred against them, they were found un- 
supported by sufficient evidence to warrant a conviction. 
This impolitic movement on the part of Iturbide, aroused 
the attention of the intelligent portion of the people, and 
petitions were presented for a reorganization of the exe- 
cutive power. Three new members were accordingly 
appointed to the regency. Itm-bide and Yannez were suf- 
fered to continue in office. 

The general-in-chief spared no effort to conciliate the 
military, advocating their claims upon all occasions, and 
displaying an interest in their welfare, which soon made 
him the idol of the army. To counteract the influence of 
the soldiery, Congress resolved to reduce the standing 
army to twenty thousand men, substituting in place of the 



ITURBIDE'S AMBITION. 195 

disbanded regiments, a force of thirty thousand militia. 
Iturbide protested strongly against this measure, asserting 
that the safety of the country demanded an augmentation, 
rather than a reduction, of the regular troops then in the 
field. Notwithstanding the opposition of the Iturbidists, 
the proposed alterations were deemed necessary, and they 
were ordered to be made without delay. Baffled by the 
decree of Congress that threatened to deprive him of his 
most devoted partisans, Iturbide determined to reach the 
summit of his ambitious desires by one bold, vigorous effort. 
On the 18th of May he presented to Congress a formal 
declaration of the Cortes of Spain, (dated the 13th of Feb- 
ruary,) against the treaty of Cordova, denouncing it as 
illegal, null, and void, as far as the Spanish government 
was concerned. Upon the reception of this intelligence, 
the Mexican Congress decided that the nation was released 
from the fulfilment of the stipulations of the treaty of the 
24th of August, 1821, and that they were at liberty to elect 
an emperor according to the fourth article of the plan of 
Iguala. Seizing the propitious moment, when " the tide 
was at the fiood which was to lead him on to fortune." 
Iturbide determined to consummate his designs, before the 
army was remodeled, or the people were awakened from 
the excitement occasioned by the decree of the Spanish 
Cortes. 

On the night of the 18th of May, 1822, the noncom- 
missioned officers of three regiments then garrisoned in 
the city, assembled the troops, and distributing money 
and pidque among their ranks, harangued them in favor 
of the general-in-chief. The eloquence of the corporals 
met with a hearty response from the men, who marched 
through the streets, and drew up in front of Iturbide's resi- 
dence ; here they were reinforced by a mob of Icperos, 
a species of sans culottes, w^ho swarmed, to the number of 
twenty thousand, within the purlieus of the capital. This 
formidable class of beggars, thieves, and assassins, were 



196 MEETING OF THE DEPUTIES. 

always upon the alert to take advantage of popular com- 
motions, in order to carry their own peculiar schemes into 
execution. At ten o'clock, the shout of, " Long live Itur- 
bide, Emperor of Mexico," resounded through the city, 
accompanied by the rattling of di'ums and discharges of 
musketry. This uproar was continued during the night, 
and filled the quiet citizens with astonishment and alarm. 
An intimation was conveyed to the senators who were 
opposed to Iturbide, warning them not to appear in pub- 
lic next day as they valued their lives, for the soldiery 
were fiercely excited against them. This ruse succeeded 
in deterring some of the most influential deputies from 
taking their seats in the house. 

On the morning of the memorable 19th of May, the 
capital was alive with excited people, who anxiously 
awaited the opening scene of the drama they were so 
much interested in; the suburbs pom^ed forth its ragged 
and uncleanly crowds, who, although they neither danced 
the '''Carmagniole," nor sung the Marseillais, were equally 
as ferocious as their brethren of the faubourgs of Paris 
in their best days. As soon as the doors of the legis- 
lative hall were opened the mob rushed in and filled the 
galleries, shouting, insulting, and even threatening the 
members, as they took their seats. Of the hundi'ed and 
thirty-four deputies, but ninety-four were present upon 
this momentous occasion. With great difficulty silence 
was obtained, and a member proceeded to addi'ess the 
house upon the events of the previous night, which he 
declared to be a strong and irresistible expression of 
public sentiment, and therefore moved that Congress 
should exercise its prerogative, and elect an emperor 
upon the spot. This proposal was received by the repre- 
sentatives in profound silence. At last one of their num- 
ber, more courageous than his colleagues, observed that 
it would be assuming a power which did not belong to 
them to proceed in the affair without consulting the 



ELECTION OP AN EMPEROR. 197 

provinces ; that Congress had assembled to frame a con- 
stitution, and not to lappoint a sovereign. The speaker 
was interrupted by the furious yells of the ruffians in the 
galleries, who flourished their swords and long knives, 
threatening to cut the throats of the members if Iturbide was 
not proclaimed before one o'clock that day. Intimidated 
by the savage mob, whose impatience increased every mo- 
ment, the assembly reluctantly consented to obey the com- 
mands of the soldiery and leperos, who were led on by 
the most worthless and abandoned wretches of the capital. 
A messenger was dispatched for Iturbide, who soon ap- 
peared in the hall, and the Congress proceeded to cast 
the votes which were to decide the fate of the empire. 
Of the ninety-four members present, seventy-seven voted 
for the General's elevation to the throne ; fifteen, with a 
firmness worthy of admiration, declared that the provinces 
ought to be consulted, and cast their ballots against him, 
and two other deputies withdrew from the house without 
expressing an opinion. Amid loud and repeated shouts 
of "Long live Augustin the First," Iturbide, with an 
affected show of humility, accepted the imperial ofiice he 
had won by sacrificing the liberty of his country, and his 
own self-respect. 



CHAPTER IV. 

Coronation of the Emperor — Refusal of the Archbishop to officiate at 
the Ceremony — Personal appearance of Iturbide — Tyrannical ad- 
ministration of the Emperor — Imprisonment of fourteen Deputies 
for Treason — Dissolution of Congress by force — Organization of a 
National Junta — Unlawful seizure of money at Perote — Imperial 
Order of Guadalupe — Colonization laws. 

The emperor was crowned with all the pomp and cere- 
monious magnificence, so characteristic of the Mexican 
people, and ascended the throne of the Montezumas with 
the cordial approbation of the army, the clergy, and a nu- 
merous and influential body of the citizens of the capital. 
The archbishop of Mexico, however, refused to officiate at 
the coronation, and even expressed his opposition to Itur- 
bide's elevation, by retiring from the city. So marked a 
token of displeasure from the head of the Mexican hierar- 
chy did not fail to create a sensation ; and while it en- 
couraged the enemies of the emperor, it cast a shadoAV 
over the future prospects of the new born dynasty. The 
provinces of the empire soon gave in their adhesion to the 
governmelit, and solemnly swore allegiance to the Empe- 
ror, as the constitutional ruler of the nation. 

Iturbide was born in the intendancy of Yalladolid, on 
the 27th of September, 1783, and was about forty years of 
age when he commenced his troubled reign. His personal 
appearance was highly pleasing and prepossessing, and 
his manners were both dignified and elegant. " His stature 
was about five feet eleven inches, stoutly made and very 
(198) 



TYRANNY OF THE EMPEROR 199 

well proportioned. His face \vas of an oval form, and his 
features were all very good except his eyes, which were 
constantly bent upon the ground or averted. His hair was 
brown, and his beard of a red color, his complexion was 
fair and ruddy, more like that of a German than a Spanish 
Creole."* By his affable and insinuating addi-ess, and the 
wealth and honors which he lavished with a liberal hand 
among the military, Iturbide gained many influential par- 
tisans who supported his arbitrary administration as long 
as he continued to shower favors upon them. But when 
the tide of adversity set against him, these mercenary syco- 
phants were the very first of his party to desert their 
former idol. 

From the manner in which the emperor had been elec- 
ted, it may be presumed that there would be a struggle 
between the legislative and executive branches of the 
government. Scarcely had Iturbide assumed the sceptre, 
when he demanded the power of appointing not only the 
members of his own council, but the judges of the supreme 
courts, together with the prerogative of vetoing all laws, 
and such articles of the constitution as he deemed useless 
or inexpedient. Congress granted him the liberty of nomi- 
nating the privy councillors, but firmly opposed his design 
of making the judiciary subservient to his own will. The 
deputies also conceded to the executive the right of vetoing 
and amending the acts of Congress, under certain restric- 
tions. During the debates upon this subject, the galleries 
of the house were filled with a disorderly crowd of soldiers 
and vagabonds, who were loud in their threats of ven- 
geance against the persons of the representatives whenever 
a measure was introduced hostile to the known wishes of 
the monarch. In the early part of August, 1822, the em- 
peror proposed an alteration in the judiciary, by substituting 
military tribunals in place of the ordinary courts, which 

* Poinsett's Notes on Mexico. 



200 IMPRISONMENT OF DEPUTIES. 

he pronounced inefficient for the administration of justice. 
This presumptuous and flagrant attempt to convert the 
monarchy into a military despotism, met with a signal 
rebuke. The delegates banded together, and repelled the 
proposition with scorn and indignation. There is no posi- 
tion so calculated to develop the inherent weakness of 
the human character as that of supreme power. Placed 
upon a giddy eminence, far above the influence of public 
opinion, which controls the wayward passions of other men, 
the despotic ruler of a nation may be compared to a vol- 
cano during an eruption ; which, though it fill the whole 
surrounding region with its glory, still reveals deformities 
which in a more subdued light would have escaped notice. 
The policy pursued by the Mexican emperor proves him 
to have been a tyrant at heart, who was determined to 
gratify his lust for power by trampling upon the sacred 
rights of his subjects. 

Exasperated by the opposition of the legislative body, 
Iturbide resorted to a measure that at once proclaimed 
his iniquitous intentions. On the night of the 26th of 
August, fourteen members of Congress were arrested upon 
an accusation of high treason, and incarcerated in prison. 
Three days elapsed before their colleagues assumed cou- 
rage to remonstrate against this abuse of imperial power. 
On the 29th, however, they demanded the release of the 
prisoners, or a hearing for them before the proper tri- 
ibunals, in accordance with the laws of the empire.* The 
minister of the Interior replied, that the act of habeas 
•corpus referred to but one person, and could not be 
applied to several guilty of a similar offence ! The Mexi- 
can Congress then demanded that the accused should be 
tried by a committee of the house ; the executive refused 
this request, alleging that it was impossible to designate 

* The Spanish Constitution had been adopted as proposed in the 
•twenty-first article of the Plan of Iguala. 



OPPOSITION OF CONGRESS. 201 

the deputies who were innocent, from those who were 
guilty of the same crime for which their colleagues were 
imprisoned. After much tumultuous debate upon this 
subject, Congress decided, on the 12th of September, to 
submit to the will of the emperor, as the surest method 
of procuring the release of the prisoners, and preserving 
the peace of the country. Four months had been con- 
sumed in the fruitless effort to restrain the prerogative 
of the executive within the limits prescribed by the or- 
ganic law of the state. During this period the affairs 
of the people were allowed to remain in the greatest 
confusion; the country swarmed with robbers and as- 
sassins, who, taking advantage of the disorder which had 
prevailed since the revolution, committed the most atro- 
cious crimes with impunity. The royal exchequer was 
bankrupt, and the expenses of the government far ex- 
ceeded the revenue. All confidence between the emperor 
and Congress had been destroyed by the tyrannical con- 
duct of the former, and the determination of the latter, to 
abstain from enacting laws which were liable to be 
stifled by the imperial veto. 

Convinced of the impossibility of attempting to bring 
the legislature into a compliance with his plans, Iturbide 
assembled a select party of his political friends, and de- 
nounced the policy pursued by Congress as opposed to 
the best interests of the country, asserting that they 
desired to overthrow his government, and erect a de- 
mocracy in its place, in contravention of the stipulations 
of the Plan of Iguala, which they had sworn to maintain 
inviolate. It was proposed by the partisans of the em- 
peror to demand of Congress a reduction of their number 
and privileges, together with an increase of the royal 
prerogative. The deputies firmly resisted these innova- 
tions, and withstood the attempts of the executive to 
cajole them into a surrender of the little liberty which 
they still retained. Determined to carry his schemes into 



202 FORMATION OF A NATIONAL JUNTA. 

effect, Iturbide resorted to the expedient employed by 
Cromwell and Napoleon under somewhat similar circum- 
stances. Accordingly, on the 30th of October, 1822, one 
of the emperor's aids appeared in the legislative hall, and 
commanded the members to disperse within ten minutes, 
or they should be expelled at the point of the bayonet. 
This threat had the desired effect, as the soldiery were 
known to be violently exasperated against the represen- 
tatives, who had, among other follies, refused to provide 
for the payment of the army. 

The dissolution of the Congress of the nation placed 
the emperor upon the height he had been struggling to 
reach. He now had succeeded in overthrowing all the 
barriers that lay between his condition as a constitutional 
sovereign and a despotic sultan. His usurpation did not 
pass without some show of resistance. Don Felix la 
Garza raised the grito of revolt in the eastern internal 
provinces, and pronounced in favor of the Congress. Itur- 
bide dispatched a division against him without delay, 
which, advancing rapidly upon Soto la Marina, attacked 
and dispersed the malcontents before they had become 
sufficiently strong to make an effectual stand. 

On the 2d of November, a national junta, consisting of 
forty-five members, were assembled by proclamation, and 
proceeded to perform all the functions of a legislative body. 
The financial affairs of the country being exposed, it was 
discovered that the expenses of the government was thir- 
teen millions of dollars; its resources amounted to but 
eight millions. The junta, in order to replenish the trea- 
sury, immediately imposed a forced loan of two millions 
five hundred thousand dollars. A large quantity of money 
was soon after seized at Perote, and appropriated by the 
rapacious administration to its own use; it belonged to 
emigrant Spaniards, who had fled to avoid the troubles 
which distracted the empire. 

Itm'bide now found himself in a position which would 



PASSAGE OF COLONIZATION LAW. 203 

have unsettled the ideas of a much greater man ; he was 
the sole arbiter of his country's destiny, untrammeled by a 
single authority potent enough to control his lawless will. 
He used every means to conciliate his foes, by conferring 
upon those who joined his party offices of profit and honor. 
He established an order of knighthood called the Imperial 
Order of Guadalupe, of which his majesty was the grand 
master. By these measures he gained many adherents, 
and, supported by the clergy, and the military, his dynasty 
seemed too firmly fixed to be easily overthrown. The pa- 
triot leaders who were opposed to his administration had 
retired from the capital; the Spaniards had been driven 
from Vera Cruz, and were now besieged in the castle of 
San Juan de Ulloa, by the imperial army under General 
Santa Anna, one of the emperor's most devoted partisans. 
The finances alone disturbed the even tenor of his reign, 
and threatened to interrupt the harmony which existed 
throughout the country. In the hope of relieving his diffi- 
culties, Iturbide issued, on the 1st of January, 1823, four 
millions of paper money, which was declared to be a legal 
tender for one-third of its amount. 

On the 3d of January, the National Junta passed a ge- 
neral colonization law, which guaranteed to protect the 
liberty, property, and civil rights , of all foreigners who 
professed the Roman Catholic religion, who should settle 
within the provinces designated by the government. This 
law referred to Texas, the only part of the empire where 
colonies had been established. It was the object of the 
Mexicans to form a barrier of American settlements upon 
their eastern frontier, that would serve as a protection 
against the savages who infested the great plains which 
stretched from the Rio Grande to the Sabine. 



CHAPTER V. 

Iturbide's progress to Jalapa — His fatal interview with Santa Anna — 
Revolt of the Garrison of Vera Cruz — Pronunciamento against the 
Emperor — Fraternization of the hostile Armies — Convention of 
Casa Mata — Victoria assumes the Command — Requisition upon the 
Clergy — Advance of the Malcontents — Abdication of the Emperor — 
Formation of a Triumvirate. 

The Spanish garrison of San Juan de Ulloa having 
made an attempt to recover the city of Vera Cruz, it was 
now deemed necessary to obtain possession of that impor- 
tant fortress; which, impregnable by its great strength, 
commanded the town and harbor of the principal seaport 
of the empire. Iturbide, accordingly, opened a negotiation 
with the commandant of the castle, which resulting in no- 
thing definite, the former resolved to proceed to the coast, 
and obtain a personal interview with the latter, in the 
hope of bringing him to terms. 

On the 10th of November, the emperor left the capital 
with a brilliant escort, and was received everywhere on 
his route, with the evidences of unshaken loyalty. Upon 
his arrival at Puebla, he was greeted by enthusiastic 
crowds, and sumptuously entertained by the bishop of the 
diocese, and the governor of that city, both of whom were 
his firm allies and friends. From there, he proceeded to 
Jalapa, where ho awaited the coming of the Spanish com- 
mander. That officer, however, refused to deliver up the 
stronghold, or to confer with the emperor beyond the pre- 
cincts of his own walls, so the negotiation terminated. 
( 204 ) 



SANTA ANNA'S PRONUNCIAMENTO. 205 

Although the emperor's visit to Jalapa failed in its 
object, yet it was the cause of hastening the development 
of events connected with the destiny of Iturbide, the 
nation, and the cause of Mexican liberty. General Echa- 
varri, the commander-in-chief of the southern division of 
the imperial army joined his majesty at Jalapa, and 
charged his second in authority, Don Antonio Lopez de 
Santa Anna, with insubordination and disobedience. 
This distinguished personage, who was by nature ambi- 
tious, haughty, and enterprising, had driven the Spaniards 
from Vera Cruz, and was at this time provisional gover- 
nor of that place, and possessed of great influence in the 
army under his orders. Iturbide, in an evil hour, called 
him to Jalapa, and harshly reproaching him, deprived him 
of his command. " To an aspiring mind, and a persever- 
ance and energy rarely associated in the Mexican charac- 
ter, Santa Anna united a sensibility of soul which rendered 
him peculiarly susceptible to the emotions of gratitude 
and revenge." Exasperated by the ungenerous conduct of 
the man he had helped to raise to a throne, he departed 
from the town, and outstripping the messenger who bore 
the order for his dismissal, he reached Vera Cruz, and 
mustering his troops, he addressed them in an impetuous 
manner. Denouncing the emperor and his administration, 
he exhorted them to take up arms and oppose a govern- 
ment so despotic, ungrateful, and inefficient. The soldiers 
received this harangue with acclamation, and readily 
enrolled themselves against the power they had sworn to 
maintain. The garrisons of the adjacent towns soon 
joined the malcontents, and the whole province of Vera 
Cruz was arrayed under their standard. Santa Anna 
immediately issued a pronunciamento in favor of a repub- 
lican form of government ; he accused the emperor of 
peijury, tyranny, and ingratitude; with having reduced 
the nation to a state verging upon ruin, by his extortions 
and unjust decrees, leveled against the sacred rights of the 



206 UNION OF THE MILITARY CHIEFS. 

people. He declared it his design to convoke the Mexi- 
can Congress, to unfurl the banner of democracy and 
march upon the capital. Finally, he advised Iturbide to 
abdicate and throw himself upon the generosity of the 
nation, v^^ho vv^ould not fail to remember his former ser- 
vices in their cause. 

Upon the reception of this document, the emperor 
ordered General Echavarri to march against the rebels 
with the forces under his command and disperse them 
without delay. Santa Anna advanced to meet him, and 
took up a position at the Puente del Rey, a bridge over the 
Rio Antigua, which he fortified. The hostile parties met, 
and fought several actions without either gaining the 
advantage or suffering much loss. This was not a vi^ar 
of caste or extermination like the preceding, but one of 
policy, in which intrigue proved more potent than the 
sword or bayonet. At this crisis Guadalupe Victoria, who 
had been concealed among the mountains, suddenly ap- 
peared in the insurgent camp, and was hailed with enthu- 
siasm by the soldiery. With a moderation which did him 
honor, Santa Anna resigned the baton of command into 
the hands of this veteran republican, whose name alone 
was a tower of strength to any cause he espoused. 

On the calends of February, 1823, Echavarri, Victoria, 
and Santa Anna, held a conference at Casa Mata, which 
resulted in a union of the hostile armies. The generals 
dispatched an officer to the capital with proposals of 
peace, but insisted upon the abdication of the emperor 
and the immediate convocation of Congress, as the sine 
qua non of the pacification. Iturbide, astounded by the 
defection of Echavarri, endeavored to recall him to his 
allegiance, but without success. His affairs were be- 
coming more desperate every horn' : his treasury was 
empty ; the paper currency he had issued was worthless ; 
the people already discontented, threatened to rise en 
masse and hurl him from his throne. 



ITURBIDE OFFERS HIS ABDICATION. 207 

Urged on by his fatal destiny, the emperor, forgetful of 
the party to whose efforts he owed his crown, attacked the 
clergy in the most susceptible part; he called upon them 
for a contribution of church plate to relieve him from the 
difficulties which pressed upon him. True to the policy 
which governs the priesthood in all countries and in ever 
clime, the Mexican prelates withdrew their support, and 
the imperial structure they had reared fell crumbling to the 
earth. The revolt which had been confined to Vera Cruz, 
soon spread over the whole country, from Valladolid to 
San Luis Potosi; the people rose, and seizing the royal 
authorities cast them into prison: Oaxaca and Guadalaxara 
also declared against the administration. Bravo and 
Guerrero, mustering an army in the western provinces, 
sounded the tocsin of rebellion and arrayed themselves in 
deadly hostility to the emperor. The forces under Victoria 
entered Puebla about the 1st of March, and were received 
as friends. Iturbide had established a camp at Iztapaluca, 
four miles from the capital, but perceiving that his star 
had fallen, he returned to the city, and on the 8th of 
March, summoned the Mexican Congress together, and 
tendered his abdication. The number of members being 
too small to form a quorum, they declined to accept his 
resignation. Deserted by the clergy, the people, and even 
the flatterers who had basked in the sunshine of royal 
favor, the unhappy prince on the 19th, made a formal sur- 
render of the imperial crown, declaring that he had 
accepted the supreme power with reluctance to save the 
country from ruin, and that he was ready to resign it, the 
moment he had discovered that his retaining it served as a 
pretext for civil war. Announcing to Congress his desire 
to seek an asylum in some foreign land, that his presence 
in Mexico might not give rise to dissensions, he solicited 
of them an appropriation sufficient to liquidate his debts. 
Again Congress refused to receive his abdication, denying 
that he had ever possessed a legitimate right to the crown, 
but they granted him permission to leave the country with 



208 BANISHMENT OF ITURBIDE. 

his family, and allowed him a pension of twenty-five 
thousand dollars a year. Iturbide, who had withdrawn to 
TulancingOj acceded to these terms, and stripping himself 
of the emblem of sovereignty which had galled his brow, 
he laid the sceptre of the Montezumas at the feet of those 
from whom he had violently WTested it. Thus terminated 
the administration of Augustin Iturbide, a man who had 
"greatness thrust upon him," a mere creature of circum- 
stances; raised to the highest pinnacle of power by the 
influence of a powerful class, his government was one of 
expedients, not of principle, and was characterized by the 
most absurd inconsistencies and unnecessary severities. 
His maxim was not that which is right, but that which is 
convenient. He ceased to govern when unsupported by 
the clergy, and a hireling soldiery, who turned their bayo- 
nets against him when his exchequer was exhausted, and 
their pay deferred. Adorned by no virtue, graced by no 
talents, he rose to a dangerous eminence, and after " strut- 
ting his hour upon the stage," he doffed the imperial 
purple, and sank back into his former obscurity. 

On the 27th of March, the republican forces under 
Victoria and Negrete, entered the capital in triumph. 
The former Congress assembled and appointed a triumvi- 
rate as the supreme executive power of the nation. The 
persons chosen, were Nicholas Bravo, Guadalupe Victoria, 
and Pedro Celestino Negrete; the latter personage had 
been a distinguished enemy to the patriots during the 
struggle which terminated in the independence of Mexico. 
General Santa Anna, in the meantime sailed from Vera 
Cruz with six hundred men, and landing at Tampico, 
advanced to San Luis Potosi, and commenced a counter- 
revolution, by declaring liimself the protector of the federal 
republic. He did not succeed, however, and was obliged 
to yield to the government. The ex-emperor, his family 
and suite, consisting of twenty-five persons, were escorted 
to the coast by General Bravo, and embarked for Italy, in 
an English vessel on the Uth of May, 1823. 



CHAPTER VI. 

Constitution of 1824 — Opposition of the Clergy and Military — In- 
trigues of the friends of the late Emperor — Revolt of Echavarri — 
Insurrection at the Capital — Banishment of Staboli and his accom- 
plices — Decree against Iturbide — Sudden return of that person- 
age — His arrest — Death of Iturbide — His reputation in Mexico. 

The revolution had so far proved eminently success- 
ful, and, notwithstanding a great diversity of opinion ex- 
isted as to the exact form of the government to be estab- 
lished, all the master spirits of the country were in favor 
of a republican system. In order to obtain the opinion 
of the people a new election was held for members of 
Congress. The deputies who were chosen assembled at 
Mexico in the autumn of 1823, and on the 20th of No- 
vember a committee of the house reported the outlines 
of a constitution modeled after that of the United States 
of the north. The committee was composed of the 
Senores Vargas, Argnelles, Mangins, Arispe, and Jose de 
Jesus Huerta, all of whom were distinguished patriots, 
and sincere advocates of democratic institutions. By this 
instrument, Mexico was to be divided into sixteen states, 
under the title of the Mexican United States ; the form 
of government to be that of a representative popular 
federal republic: 

Article III. Declares that, " The religion of the Mexican 
nation is, and will be perpetually, the Roman Catholic ApostoUc," 
and prohibits the exercise of all other. 

14 (209) 



'210 CONSTITUTION OF 1824. 

" Art. VII. The legislative power of the federation shall be 
•disposed in a Congress, to be divided into two houses, one of 
(deputies and the other of senators. 

" Art. XI. For every eighty thousand souls, one representative 
shall be appointed, or for a fraction which passes forty thousand: 
the state which may not contain this population to be entitled to 
one representative notwithstanding. 

"Art. XXV. The senate shall be composed of two senators 
from each state, elected by an absolute majority of the votes of the 
'legislatures. 

"Art. LXVII. Every resdlution of the general Congress shall 
ihave the character of a law or decree. 

"Art. LXX. All laws relating to contributions or impost to 
■originate in the house of deputies. The supreme executive power 
was to be lodged in one individual, styled the president of the 
Mexican United States." 

"There was also to be a vice-president; both of these offi- 
cers to be elected by the legislatures of the different states. The 
term of service for the executive was to be four years. No 
president could be elected for two consecutive terms. The ex- 
ecutive had the privilege of vetoing all laws Avithin ten days 
after their enactment, unless such laws had been passed by a 
majority of two-thirds of both houses of Congress. During the 
recess of Congress, one senator from each state officiated as a mem- 
ber of the Council of Government, of which the vice-president of 
Mexico was the cliairman. This council performed the duties of 
the senate, and were the constitutional advisers of the executive, 
possessed of power to conh'ol his official authority, if deemed 
necessary. The administration of justice was confided to one 
supreme, and several district and circuit courts. The supreme 
court was composed of eleven members, divided into three halls. 
The judges held their offices during good behavior, and were 
elected by the legislatures throughout the confederacy upon the 
same day. The circuit courts were composed of one professional 
judge, one prosecuting attorney, and two associate judges. The 
members of these tribunals were nominated by the supreme court, 
and appointed by the president. Before entering upon their duties, 



INFLUENCE OF RELIGIOUS INTOLERANCE. 211 

the judges of the latter took the following oath, in presence of the 
president of the Republic : * You swear to God our Lord, faithfully 
to discharge the duties and obligations confided to you by the na- 
tion. If you do this God will reward you ; if otherwise, he will 
punish you.' No suit could be instituted, either in civil or crimi- 
nal cases, for injuries, unless the litigants could prove that they 
had legally attempted the means of conciliation."* 

Such are the outlines of the Mexican constitution — 
an instrument, in some respects, equal to that of any 
country ; in others very deficient. Its great faults were the 
prohibition of all forms of religion save that of Rome, 
and its neglecting to provide for trial by jury, that mighty 
bulwark of the people against the power of an interested 
or venal judiciary. This absurd devotion to the Roman 
Church has been the curse of the Mexican nation ; it has 
dried up the fountains of liberty, and has spread a blight- 
ing influence over the land, withering and paralyzing the 
efforts of those who have endeavored to dispel the clouds 
of ignorance and superstition ; which hang in gloomy folds 
upon the altars of her cathedrals, and around the humble 
firesides of her degraded peasantry ; and unless a more 
liberal spirit of religious toleration prevails, Mexico can- 
not hope to prosper, but will sink lower and lower in the 
scale of nations, until her light is extinguished in the 
blood of her slaughtered people ; who will fall, like the 
subjects of her ancient monarchs, a prey to the valor and 
enterprise of some bold invader. 

" We buried their fathers upon the San Jacinto ; w^e 
will bury their sons upon the Rio Bravo." This boast of 
tlie Texans has been accomplished long since, in smoke 
and in flame. The enemies of the federal system, the 
most prominent of whom were ecclesiastics and military 
chiefs, opposed the establishment of the constitution by 
every means known to politicians. They resorted to in- 

* By means of the Consulado. 



212 INSURRECTION OF LOBATO. 

trigue, artifice, threats, and bribery; and when these failed, 
they did not scruple to excite their partisans, to array them- 
selves in hostility against the administration. 

In the early part of January, 1824, General Echavarri, 
who occupied the province of Puebla, raised the standard 
of revolt, and refused to obey the commands of the trium- 
virate. General Guerrero was sent against the rebels, by 
the government, who, marching upon them at the head of 
a battalion, quelled the disturbance without resorting to 
force, and carried Echavarri a prisoner to the capital. 
Shortly afterwards, another insurrection took place at 
Cuernavaca, in the Tierra Caliente, which was also put 
down by the active Guerrero, who proved himself to be 
worthy of all confidence. The opponents of the constitu- 
tion, who wished to establish a central system, managed 
to defer the adoption of that instrument, until the patience 
of several of the States becoming exhausted, they took up 
arms, and threatened to withdraw from the confederacy 
unless their wishes were complied with. Taking advan- 
tage of this diversion in their favor, the federalists insisted 
upon the immediate adoption of the constitution, which 
was accordingly sworn to on the 2d of February, 1824, to 
the great satisfaction of all who really desired the good of 
the republic. 

During this period, an insurrection broke out in the city 
of Mexico, caused by the ancient enmity which existed 
between the Creoles and European Spaniards. The na- 
tives of the capital and the garrison, headed by Colonel 
Lobato, demanded the expulsion of the Spaniards from all 
public employments; Congress refused to gi-ant this re- 
quest, and the Avhole city was thrown into an alarming 
state of agitation. Lobato finally submitted to the govern- 
ment, and was pardoned. His second in command, Lieu- 
tenant Colonel Staboli, still held out, and did not sm-render 
until his followers deserted him. Staboli was tried by a 
court-martial, and condemned to be shot; he was subse- 



ITURBIDE DECLARED A TRAITOR. 213 

quently liberated and banished from Mexico, with twenty- 
three other officers, who were implicated in the revolt. 
In consequence of the excitement which continued to 
prevail, it was deemed advisable to comply with the de- 
mands of the natives, as there had been too much cause for 
their prejudice against the Spaniards. Several changes 
were therefore made in the departments ; the Europeans 
were superseded by Creoles, the former being allowed a 
pension for life of one-third of their former pay. The su- 
preme executive was also remodeled, and was now com- 
posed of Nicholas Bravo, Vicente Guerrero, and Miguel 
Dominguez. On the 28th of April, Congress passed a law 
declaring Augustin Iturbide a traitor, and sentenced him 
to death should he re-enter the republic. This decree was 
designed to check the movements of the partisans of the 
late emperor, who, being excluded from all share in the 
management of the affairs of the nation, were constantly 
disturbing the tranquillity of the state by their intrigues. 
That these disaffected persons were bent upon restoring 
the imperial power, was soon placed beyond the shadow 
of a doubt by an eventful catastrophe. 

On the 14th of July, 1824, a strange vessel was seen 
hovering upon the coast near the river Santander : she 
was under English colors, and excited the curiosity of the 
people on shore, who seldom witnessed such an appear- 
ance upon this solitary part of the Mexican Gulf. On 
the following day, General Felix la Garza, the command- 
ant of the district of Soto la Marina, was waited upon 
by a person from the ship, who announced himself as 
Charles de Beneski, a Polish gentleman who visited Mexi- 
co with a friend, with the intention of negotiating with 
the government for a tract of land for the purpose of 
founding a colony from abroad. La Garza gave the fo- 
reigners permission to enter the country, although he was 
not without his suspicions as to their object in landing 
upon this isolated spot. On the 17th, the General was 



214 RETURN OF ITURBIDE. 

informed that Beneski was walking on shore with a com- 
panion who was disguised, and appeared to shun observa- 
tion. The commandant dispatching a party of troops in 
pursuit of them, the strangers were apprehended at Paraje 
de los Arroyos, eighteen miles from Soto la Marina. The 
prisoners were brought before La Garza ; when being 
stripped of his disguise, Iturbide stood face to face with 
his former officer. Having revolted against the emperor 
in 1823, and having been routed and disgraced. La Garza 
bore no good will toward his* illustrious captive, so strange- 
ly placed in his power. 

Overrating, his influence with his countrymen, or like 
the young Foscari, sick 

" Of that malady 

Which calls up green and native hills to view 

From the rough deep, with such identity 

To the exile's fevered eye," 

The banished monarch returned to die upon the soil that 
ga,ve him birth, and nourished him up to greatness. The 
lamed beauties of the " picture land" of Italy, to which he 
had been exiled, were forgotten in the remembrance of the 
gorgeous loveliness of the vale of Mexico. General La 
Garza conducted his prisoners to Padilla and delivered 
them up to the authorities of the state* within whose 
confines they had been taken. The legislature was then 
in session, and determined to execute the decree of Con- 
gress Avhich had been passed in the month of April 
preceding. Iturbide entreated the authorities to submit 
his case to the general government ; asserting the purity 
of his intentions in returning, but without success : the 
legislature was inexorable, and he was sentenced to die 
with indecent haste. 

On the evening of the 19th of July, after confessing 
himself, Iturbide was led to execution. He addressed 

* Tamaulipas. 



DEATH OF ITURBIDE. 215 

those who were present in an earnest manner, declaring 
that he had sought his native land, not as a dethi'oned 
prince to claim his crown, but as a soldier and a Mexican, 
for the purpose of binding up the wounds of his beloved 
country, and to defeat the machinations of her enemies ! 
He exhorted those around him to love their country, and 
obey the present government ; he then announced his 
readiness to die, and placing a bandage over his eyes he 
knelt on the ground. The word of command was given, 
which was followed by a volley of musketry, and the rest- 
less spirit of the Mexican chief no longer animated his 
frame.* The news of the death of Itm-bide was received 
by the nation with no exhibition of unseemly exultation; 
and although the different state legislatures sent their 
congratulations to the federal gpvernment,, the sins of the 
deceased were regarded more in sorrow than in anger. 
The Mexican Congress, without openly reproving the offi- 
cious zeal of the authorities who had taken upon- them- 
selves the execution of the ex-emperor, resolved to reward 
his eminent services by granting his family a pension of 
eight thousand dollars a year.f 

Since that period the reputation of Iturbide has in- 
creased among his countrymen until it has reached its 
climax, and he is now recognized throughout Mexico as 
the father of his country ! The anniversary of the day 
which gave him birth, is celebrated in every city, town, 
and pueblo, from Chiapas to Santa Fe, with all the usual 
demonstrations with which nations proclaim, their grati- 
tude towards public benefactors. 

* He fell pierced with four ball? : two of which were lodged in his 
brain, the same number in his heart. 

] Iturbide's family consisted of a wife and two children. 



CHAPTER VII. 

Abolition of Negro slavery in Mexico — Origin of African slavery in 
Southern America — Financial difficulties — Negotiation of a loan — 
Recognition of Mexican Independence by the United States and Bri- 
tain — National Colonization Law — Election and inauguration of 
Victoria and Bravo — Prosperous condition of the Colonies east of the 
Rio Grande. 

On the IStli of July, 1824, the supreme executive power 
of Mexico issued a decree, manumitting negro slaves, and 
abolishing the slave trade within the territory of the re- 
public. Every slave brought into the country after this 
date was declared to be a free man, from the moment he 
landed upon the Mexican soil. It was fai'ther decreed, 
that all vessels engaged in transporting negroes into 
Mexico should be confiscated, and their owners, agents 
and officers, subjected to ten years' imprisonment. 

The Mexicans owed the introduction of Africans into 
their country to the efforts of Las Casas, the benevolent 
Dominican, who, wishing to preserve the natives of the 
continent from the fate which had befallen those of His- 
paniola, proposed to substitute in their stead a race, 
whose physical and moral peculiarities seemed to destine 
them to a life of bondage. Yielding to the persuasions of 
Las Casas, Charles V. granted a license,* to one of his 
courtiers, to introduce negroes into the Spanish colonies. 
This personage sold the privilege to a company of Genoese 
merchants, who loaded several ships with Africans and 

* The Assiento, Philip V. transferred this right to the English. 
(216) 



FINANCIAL DIFFICULTIES. 217 

sent them to America. In the rich islands of Hispaniola 
and Cuba, the accursed freight was purchased with avidity-; 
but upon the mainland, where the natives were of a more 
hardy constitution, more accustomed to labor, and there- 
fore better suited for slaves than those of the isles, a small 
number only was disposed of; and at the time when the 
decree of manumission was promulgated, there were not 
more than ten thousand African bondsmen in the republic. 
This act of enfranchisement was a deed of justice and 
mercy to all classes, inasmuch as the majority of the peo- 
ple were so wretchedly poor that their labor could be 
purchased for a mere trifle. 

On the 18th of August, the Triumvirate of Mexico is- 
sued a colonization law, confirmatory of that passed the 
preceding year. By the fourth article of this decree, it was 
declared that no settlements could be made within twenty 
leagues of the territory of any foreign nation, nor within ten 
leagues of the sea-coasts, without the express approbation 
of the general executive power. By article seventh, it was 
guaranteed that, until after the year 1840, no law should 
be passed prohibiting the entrance of foreigners into the 
country as colonists, " unless imperious circumstances 
should require it, with respect to individuals of a particular 
nation." The new colonists were forbidden to transfer 
their property in manus muertos (mortmain) or to hold 
lands, if they were not domiciliated within the limits of 
the republic, or citizens thereof. 

It cannot be denied that these laws were not dictated 
in a spirit of generous liberality, always excepting the 
articles requiring the colonists to submit to the predominant 
religion of the country. As these laws referred to Texas, 
they may be regarded as so many executive warrants 
authorizing the dismemberment of the Mexican domain. 

One of the greatest difficulties under which the govern- 
ment labored arose from the distracted condition of the 
public finances. In the month of August, 1824, the Mexi- 



218 TERMINATION OF SPANISH POWER. 

can agents succeeded in negotiating a loan of twenty 
millions of dollars, with an opulent house in London; a 
second loan of sixteen millions was subsequently obtained 
during the same year. This filled the cofi^ers of the state, 
and enabled the executive to carry out their patriotic 
schemes for the regeneration of the nation. 

On the 1st of January, 1825, the general sovereign con- 
stituent Congress of Mexico assembled at the capital, and 
was opened with all due solemnity. On the 6th of the 
same month, the votes of the state legislatures were read 
in presence of both houses, and Guadalupe Victoria was 
declared President of the United Mexican States, and 
Nicholas Bravo, Vice-President of the same. Congress 
passed several laws during this session calculated to pro- 
mote the prosperity of the nation. All titles of nobility 
were abolished in the republic, as being contrary to the 
democratic constitution which had been adopted. An ef- 
fort was also made to circumscribe the power of the priest- 
hood within the limits corresponding to the new order of 
things. 

The poor remains of the once formidable Spanish 
power was now concentrated at San Juan de Ulloa, Callao, 
the port of Lima, and at Chiloe on the coast of Chili. 
The European forces were few in number, and were 
neither feared or respected by the emancipated colonies, 
who shortly afterwards witnessed their sm-render. Thus 
was the power of Spain, with all its splendid array of vice- 
kings and captain-generals, swept before the hm'ricane of 
revolution from the lands accursed by her despotic and 
iniquitous rule. The political simoom had crossed not 
only the valleys and mountains of Mexico, but along the 
shores of Columbia, Chili, Guatemala, and the ancient 
empire of Peru. The brilliant victory of Ayacucho had 
crowned the struggles of the republicans with success. 
Seas of blood had been shed and deeds of cruelty perpe- 
trated, unheard of in modern times; the footsteps of cither 



INAUGURATION OF VICTORIA. SJ19 

faction had been tracked in the blood of not only those 
engaged in actual warfare, but too often in that of the aged 
and helpless, of women and innocent children. And now, 
having passed through all the horrors of revolution and 
intestine war, and shaken off the grasp of foreign domina- 
tion, the several states entered upon the dangerous expe- 
riment of self-government. How signally they have failed 
in that glorious career is but too well known. Their deeds 
have been forced upon the observation of mankind, until 
their feelings revolt, and they turn away in horror and 
disgust from the page which records the bloody history. 
Suddenly emerging from a state of degradation and de- 
pendence, the nations of the south were blinded by the 
flood of light which poured upon their path from the altar 
of freedom, and like one long confined within the gloomy 
walls of a dungeon, they staggered to and fro until they 
have fallen into a condition of anarchy and disorder more 
deplorable than that which preceded their emancipation. 
The Mexicans and Peruvians have merely changed their 
masters, the military chiefs of the present day are equally 
as tyrannous and licentious as the delegated sovereigns, 
who formerly swayed the conquered sceptres of Monte- 
zuma and the Incas. 

President Victoria was inaugurated on the 1st of April, 
1825, and commenced his administration under the fairest 
auspices. The United States had recognized the inde- 
pendence of Mexico during the reign of Iturbide, in 1822. 
The government of Great Britain had announced her 
determination of doing the same on the 1st of January, 
and had appointed commissioners, vested with full pow 
ers to negotiate a treaty of commerce with the new 
Republic. The treasury of the state had been replen- 
ished, and the turbulent spirits who had so often disturbed 
the public tranquillity, seemed to have withdrawn from 
the political arena, where they had displayed their unge- 
nerous strife. The state authorities who had been elected 



220 PROSPERITY OF MEXICO. 

to office had entered upon their duties, and appeared 
determined to second the efforts of the federal govern- 
ment in laying the foundations of the democratic dynasty 
upon a solid and permanent basis. Victoria was per- 
sonally a popular man with the people, the soldiery, and 
^he clergy; he had experienced many vicissitudes, and 
had proved his devotion to the cause of freedom in many 
a bloody field. The first year of Victoria's administra- 
tion passed without any important event worthy of 
record ; the fierce elements were stilled, and the bark of 
state glided tranquilly along through the calm waters. 

By the constitutional act of the 7th of May, 1824, 
the territory bordering upon the Rio Grande and the 
province of Texas was provisionally united to form the 
state of Coahuila and Texas, " until Texas possessed the 
necessary elements to prove a separate state of herself." 
This decree gave the latter a specific political exist- 
ence, and recognized her as one of the unities of the 
Mexican federation. On the 24th of March, 1825, the 
legislatm'e of the " free, sovereign, and independent state 
of Coahuila and Texas, desiring, by every possible means, 
to augment the population of its territory, to promote 
the cultivation of its fertile lands, the raising, and mul- 
tiplication of stock, and the progress of the arts and com- 
merce," passed a colonization law confirming the decrees 
of the general government, and guaranteeing the foreign- 
ers in their personal and political rights. The colonies 
on the Brazos and in the eastern part of Texas were 
rapidly advancing toward a state of great prosperity; the 
vast plains were filled with herds, the valleys with plen- 
teous crops of full-eared corn, and the cheerful sounds 
of human industry resounded through the forests so lately 
the abode of the prowling savage. 



CHAPTER VIII. 

Struggle between the rival Masonic Lodg-es — Efforts of the Clergy to 
suppress Masonry — Political Principles of the two Factions — Pro- 
nunciamento of Colonel Montanyo — General Bravo Revolts — Guer- 
rero quells the Rebellion — Services of Commodore Porter — Santa 
Anna takes up Arms — He is Outlawed — He enters the Capital — 
Struggles of the Factions — The City is Pillaged. 

DuRDfG the winter of 1826, the Mexican Congress was 
thrown into great excitement by the introduction of a bill 
for the suppression of Masonic societies within the repub- 
lic, in obedience to a papal bull issued by the Roman 
Pontiff. In all ages and countries, the Romish clergy have 
regarded free-masonry with the greatest abhorrence, de- 
nouncing it as a pestilent heresy, worthy of the severest 
punishment. In the year 1738, Pope Clement XII. excom- 
municated all persons connected with masonic lodges ; in 
1751, Benedict XIV. confirmed the sentence of his prede- 
cessor. The Inquisition punished those suspected of free- 
masonry with torture, imprisonment, and even death. 
Ferdinand VI., of Spain, condemned the members of this 
society to suffer the penalty inflicted upon those guilty of 
high treason. His successor, Charles IV., then king of 
Naples, issued an edict to the same effect. In France, 
Holland, and Italy, the assemblage of lodges was pro- 
hibited by both the priesthood and the laws of the state. 

The Mexican clergy, more bigoted and powerful than 
those of the Peninsula, had been enabled to keep this 
heresy beyond the limits of the viceroyalty; but no sooner 

(221) 



222 INTRIGUES IN MASONIC LODGES. 

had Mexico declared her independence than, in spite of all 
their efforts, the seeds of masonry began to spring up in 
all parts of the country. The Pope was therefore called 
upon to blast their growth, by the spiritual thunder of the 
church. In defiance of the commands of his holiness, and 
the threats and persuasions of the native clergy, the bill 
demanding the suppression of masonic lodges was rejected 
by the Mexican Congress. And as nothing tends to in- 
crease the spread of any opinion so much as persecution, 
the opposition of the priesthood soon rendered the free- 
masons both numerous and popular. The members of 
this order carried their political principles within the 
precincts of their respective lodges, which were converted 
into assemblies devoted to or against the interests of the 
federal government. 

The charter of the original lodges established in Mexico 
had been obtained from Scotland, the members of which 
were called the Escoces; the persons composing this 
branch of the society were opposed to the constitution, and 
in favor of a limited monarchy, to be governed by a Span- 
ish prince. In order to counteract the influence of this 
faction, another society was organized, known as the 
Yorkino lodge, the members of which were devoted to 
the cause of democracy and the constitution. The Esco- 
ces numbered among their adherents many persons of 
wealth and influence; the Vice-President of the republic, 
Nicholas Bravo, was their leader; Gomez Pedraza, Jose 
Montanyo, and several distinguished statesmen and sol- 
diers, were firm supporters of the aristocratic faction. 
The Yorkinos were headed by generals Victoria, Santa 
Anna, Guerrero, Lorenzo de Zavala, and Bustamente, all 
of whom were men of talents and reputation. Each of 
these rival parties endeavored to break down the other, 
but without success ; the legislative halls were converted 
into a field of contention, which witnessed the alternate 
defeat and triumph of either faction. The fierce passions 



REVOLT OF TEXAS. 223 

which had so often filled the plains with hostile armies, 
were here displayed in deadly opposition, and threatened to 
rend the confederacy to pieces. The Yorkinos were the 
most numerous party, and had more partisans among the 
people of the provinces, the intelligent citizens and agri- 
culturists, the village curas and subalterns of the army; 
but they had to contend against an opulent and powerful 
class, composed of the dignitaries of the church, the great 
landholders and miners, the higher officers of the army and 
of the state, who employed the vast resources at their dis- 
posal to advance the cause they had sworn to support. 
Every measure introduced into Congress serv^ed as a cause 
of war for the parties, whose reckless hostility toward each 
other rendered them incapable of performing their duties 
as the legislators of a free people. 

These dissensions continued to distract the councils of 
the nation during the session of Congress; and after its 
adjournment, the members of the legislative and executive 
branches differing widely upon all subjects demanding 
their attention, the interests of the people were neglected; 
and had not the state legislatures acted with more wisdom 
than the federal government, the country would have been 
thrown into the greatest disorder. Fortunately the pro- 
vinces enjoyed an immunity from the distractions which 
convulsed the capital, and were steadily advancing to- 
wards a condition of prosperity hitherto unknown to them. 
Texas alone exhibited a warlike aspect, in consequence 
of the mad attempt of a number of adventurers to erect 
the eastern portion of the province into a separate state. 
The assumed cause of this revolt was, that the Mexican 
government had abolished slavery. There were a great 
number of negroes in Texas, who were bound for life, and 
were dc facto the property of their masters. This arrange- 
ment, however, did not content the Fredonians, as they 
called themselves, who took up arms, and forming an alli- 
ance with some Indians in the vicinity, resolved to resist 



224 REVOLT OF MONTANYO. 

the authority of the state. A division of troops marched 
against the malcontents, and an action ensued, which 
resulted in the defeat and dispersion of the rebels. Gene- 
ral Long, their leader, was subsequently assassinated at 
San Antonio de Bexar. 

Toward the close of the same year, 1827, Colonel Jose 
Montanyo, a distinguished leader of the Escoces faction, 
sounded the tocsin of civil war at Otumba, and promulga- 
ted a plan for the forcible reform of the government. In 
December, General Bravo denounced President Victoria 
as a Yorkino, and leaving the capital and fratrinizing with 
the rebels, marched to Tulancingo, and declared in favor 
of the plan of Montanyo, which was to establish a central 
consolidated system in lieu of the one then in operation. 
The insurgents mustered in strong force; the discontented 
flocked to their camp from the neighboring states, swelling 
their ranks and rendering them more formidable every 
hour. The aristocratic party in the capital were prepared 
to rise against the government the moment Bravo ap- 
peared before its walls. The clergy were actually en- 
gaged in sowing the seeds of discord among the people ; 
destroying their confidence in the existing dynasty by 
insidious and covert means. 

At this dangerous crisis, January, 1828, General Guer- 
rero was sent to quell the revolt ; marching against the 
rebels, their forces seemed to melt away at his approach, 
like the mist before the rising sun, their power was broken, 
their men dispersed, and Bravo found himself no longer at 
the head of an army. By the energetic efforts of Guerrero 
the country was soon quieted and the constitution pre- 
served. Bravo and his principal associates were banished 
from the republic they had sought to destroy by a decree 
of Congress. 

The government of Spain beheld in these fatal dissen- 
sions so many evidences of returning affection for herself, 
and was actively engaged in concentrating forces at Cuba, 



COMMODORE DAVID PORTER. 225 

for the purpose of taking possession of her former depen- 
dency. Vessels were fitted out and manned with troops, 
emissaries were sent into Mexico to sustain the hopes of 
the partisans of Spain, and to gain adherents by promises 
of magnificent rewards of rank and wealth. The Mexican 
executive was warned betimes of the designs of the enemy, 
but destitute of ships of war, was unable to prevent their 
execution in the then condition of the national marine. 
Fortunately at this junctm^e the republic was able to secure 
the services of one whose reputation bore the prestige of 
success, and whose honesty, sincerity, and gallantry, has 
placed his name high upon the rolls of fame. This per- 
sonage was Commodore David Porter, of the American 
navy, who entered the Mexican service, and by his indi- 
vidual efforts saved the country from the horrors of an 
invasion. Dm-ing the years 1826-7-8-9, Com. Porter had 
command of the Mexican marine, and gave innumerable 
proofs of his zeal, activit}^^, and fidelity to the republic* 
"Captm-ed Spanish vessels were constantly arriving in 
the harbor of Vera Cruz. Vessels of every description 
were taken upon the coast and even in the ports of Cuba,, 
some of which were laden with rich cargoes. The prisons 
were filled with Spanish prisoners, and the military and 
naval forces collected for the reconquest of Mexico were 
required for the protection and defence of the commerce 
of Spain, and the island of Cuba. The revenue of the re- 
public was greatly increased by the payment of duties 
upon Spanish prize goods, and the sale of prizes." Nor 
did this worthy veteran withdraw from the country, until 
he had lost one son in its service, another wounded and 
taken prisoner, a nephew killed in battle, and he himself 



* The Mexican navy consisted in 1826, of nineteen vessels, one ship 
of the line, two frigates, one schooner, four gunboats, one corvette, four 
launches and two pilot boats. After Com. Porter left Mexico, the ma- 
rine fell into disuse, and has never been respectable since that period. 
15 



22Q REVOLT OF THE YORKINOS. 

•subjected to great sufferings, and the dread of death from 
the knife of the assassin.* 

On the 1st of September, 1828, the several states of 
the confederacy proceeded to elect a chief magistrate to 
succeed President Victoria, whose term would expire upon 
the following April. There were two candidates in the 
field for this important office : one of which, Manuel 
Gomez Pedraza, then Secretary of War and Marine, was 
supported by the Escoces faction. The Yorkinos 
brought forward General Vicente Guerrero, whose politi- 
cal opinions were decidedly democratic. The legislatures 
throughout the Republic were nearly equally divided; 
and, after a close contest between the parties upon this 
question, Pedraza was elected by a majority of two votes. 
This result did not satisfy the Yorkinos who claimed 
the office for their own candidate. The question was 
agitated in the rival lodges, where, concealed from the 
observation of the people, the members of either faction 
conspired against the tranquillity of the nation by plotting 
for the supremacy. The most distinguished of these par- 
tisans was General Santa Anna, and Lorenzo de Zavala, 
the grand master of the Yorkino lodge, both of whom 
were warm advocates of the federal system. These chiefs 
in conjunction with Guerrero, and generals Montezuma 
and Lobato, resolved to obtain possession of the helm of 
state at all hazards. President Victoria, although a 
Yorkino in principle, endeavored, but in vain, to still the 
tempest which threatened to annihilate the constitution 
and sweep away the political fabric which had been 
reared with so much blood and treasure. 

In the autumn of 1828, General Santa Anna placing 
himself at the head of the garrison of Jalapa, and seizing 
upon the funds belonging to the state, denounced the 



* Memoir of Commodore Porter to the American Secretary of State, 
February 24th, 1836. 



SANTA ANNA OUTLAWED. 227 

election of Pedraza as illegal, fraudulent, and unconstitu- 
tional ! He soon collected a powerful force, and taking 
possession of the castle of Perote, sent a division against 
Vera Cruz, where he had many personal and political 
friends. As the rebels advanced towards the city, the 
inhabitants were filled with consternation, founded on the 
assurance that it would be captured and given up to pil- 
lage. At this crisis the people of Vera Cruz found a 
protector in Commodore Porter, who, at the urgent solici- 
tation of the governor and foreign residents, took com- 
mand of the town and manned the fortifications with men 
drawn from the vessels of war then in port.* Upon the 
reception of this intelligence, the insurgents, who had 
anticipated an easy conquest and rich booty, in the opu- 
lent city of the true cross, halted in their march, and forti- 
fied themselves at Puente del Rey, intercepting all com- 
munication between the capital and the eastern coast; 
not daring, however, to advance beyond their position, 
to the great relief of the citizens, who had already beheld 
the spoiler at their gates. From his head-quarters at 
Perote, Santa Anna issued a manifesto, declaring his 
intention of marching upon the capital, and placing the 
Yorkino candidate upon the presidential chair by force 
of arms. For this, and other seditious acts, the govern- 
ment declared him an outlaw and an enemy to the Repub- 
lic.! This spirited decree baffled the attempts of the 
Mexican Cataline for a time ; his friends, being inspired 
with a wholesome dread of the executive poM^er, withdrew 
their support, and left him to maintain the revolt unaided 
and alone. The greatest difficulty which impedes the 
progress of men of superior abilities in their advancement 
towards the objects of their ambition, is the inefficiency, 
obstinacy, or intractability, of the individuals they are 

* Memoir of Commodore Porter. 

f Zavala's Hist, of the Rev'n Nueva Espagna. 



228 GUERRERO TAKES THE FIELD. 

compelled to use as instruments. Such was Santa Anna's 
predicament; neither Guerrero, Bustamente, nor any of 
the Yorkino faction dared to come out boldly and second 
his efforts. In the meantime his forces were melting 
away, or wasting their energies by loitering in camp. 

As the winter approached, the struggle between the 
rival parties assumed a fiercer character, and it soon be- 
came apparent that the contest could be settled in no other 
way than by the sword and bayonet. About the 1st of 
December, 1828, General Guerrero took the field in person, 
and, placing himself at the head of the Yorkino forces, 
advanced upon the capital. On the 4th of December, 
Santa Anna issued a pronunciamento against the election 
of Pedraza, and in favor of Guerrero and the federal sys- 
tem. The Escoces prepared to resist this violent method 
of obtaining the supreme power, and armed themselves for 
the conflict. But the hostile army was too strong to be 
kept beyond the walls by the feeble efforts of their adver- 
saries. The Yorkinos entered the city, and for several 
days the streets of Mexico were deluged with the blood of 
the contending factions. The houses of the Escoces 
were pillaged, the Parian* M'as sacked, and full sway 
given to the licentious passions of a mob, composed of the 
most degraded population in the world. The leperos and 
banditti from the neighboring hills found work enough for 
their long knives, and rioted in the excess given to their 
lawless desires. Murder and rapine stalked abroad, and 
neither age nor sex was spared during this dreadful period. 
The rude scene finally terminated; Pedraza and his asso- 
ciates fled, leaving their rivals in possession of the coveted 
power. 

* The Parian is a species of public pawn-broking establishment under 
protection of the government; it usually contains an immense quantity of 
very valuable property. 



CHAPTER IX. 

Conspiracy of the Escoces — Landing of a Spanish army under Gene- 
ral Barradas — Santa Anna marches against him — Capitulation of 
the Spaniards — Revolt of Bustamente — Union of Santa Anna with 
the Rebels — Flight of Guerrero — Tyranny of Bustamente — Diffi- 
culties in the northern Provinces — War between the rival Parties — 
Capture and death of Guerrero. 

The sovereign constituent Congress of Mexico met on 
the 1st of January, 1829, and on the 6th of the same month 
declared Vicente Guerrero, President of the republic, and 
Anastasio Bustamente, Vice-President. The flight of Pe- 
draza, and the leading members of the aristocratic party, 
had removed the principal cause of discord, and the few 
months which preceded the close of Victoria's administra- 
tion passed in comparative tranquillity. 

On the 1st of April, 1829, Guerrero and his associate 
were inaugurated into office; General Montezuma was 
appointed secretary of war and marine, and General Santa 
Anna was placed in command at Vera Cruz. Lorenzo de 
Zavala was elected governor of the state of Mexico, and 
General Filisola, another distinguished federalist, com- 
manded the military of the province. 

The Escoces, although defeated by their opponents 
in the halls of Congress as well as in the field, still deter- 
mined to continue the struggle, even at the cost of the in- 
dependence of the country. Among other outrages against 
the safety of the republic, they maintained a treasonable 
correspondence with the Spanish authorities in the island 

( 229 ) 



230 LANDING OF THE SPANISH ARMY. 

of Cuba, entering into a conspiracy with them for the pur- 
pose of bringing Mexico once more beneath the sway of a 
Bourbon prince. As they carried on their plot concealed 
under the sacred veil of a masonic temple, neither the na- 
tion nor the government were aware to what dangerous 
extremities the passions of these men had huiTied them, 
until the footsteps of an invading army were heard upon 
their shores. Commodore Porter, disgusted with the per- 
fidy and ingratitude of the people whom he had served 
with so much zeal and fidelity, had withdrawn from the 
country where he had " lost every thing that was valuable 
to him, except his self-respect and good name." After his 
departure, the Mexican gulf and adjacent coasts Avere un- 
protected by a single efficient vessel of war, and the 
Spaniards experienced no difficulty in throwing an army 
into the interior of the republic. An expedition was fitted 
out at Havanna in July, 1829, consisting of four thousand 
troops, commanded by General Barradas. The invaders 
landed at Tampico on the 27th, and meeting with no 
opposition, marched into the country, and encamped in a 
strong position. The Mexicans were taken by surprise 
by this bold enterprise, and for a time seemed incapable 
of resisting the advance of the enemy; recovering from 
the panic into which they had been thrown by this unex- 
pected event, the supreme authorities dispatched General 
Santa Anna, with a competent force, against the Span- 
iards, at the same time using every precaution to prevent 
the Spanish faction from uniting with them. After a con- 
test between the hostile armies, which never came to a 
general engagement, Barradas finding himself unsupported 
by the Escoccs, and being destitute of the necessary 
supplies to carry on the war, was forced to surrender. 
The invading army laid down its arms on the 10th of 
September, and shortly afterwards were permitted to 
retire from the scene of its disgrace. Santa Anna returned 
to the capital covered with honors and renown. 



OPPOSITION OF CONGRESS. 231 

The exigencies of the state had, in the opinion of the 
government, demanded an increase of the executive 
power, and Guerrero had, accordingly, assumed the style 
and authority of dictator. Notwithstanding the abortive 
attempt of the Spaniards to regain possession of Mexico, 
the Escoces were still conspiring to subvert the consti- 
tution. Aware of the machinations of this party, presi- 
dent Guerrero continued to exercise the extraordinary 
powers he had been invested with, when the country was 
tlu-eatened by a foreign army. This reluctance to resign 
the dictatorship served as a pretext for another revolution, 
which was headed by the vice-president, Bustamente. In 
December, 1829, this general, placing himself at the head 
of a division of the republican troops, pronounced against 
the administration, of which he was a member. The ex- 
ecutive ordered Santa Anna to march against the rebels 
and reduce them to obedience, instead of which he at first 
feebly opposed, and finally fratrinized with Bustamente. 
The two generals, advancing upon the capital, forced the 
president to fly, leaving his rival in possession of the 
power, who was soon after elected his successor by the 
army. Guerrero retired to Valladolid de Mechoacan, 
where he organized a government in opposition to that 
of Bustamente, and again did Mexico behold her sons 
arrayed in deadly hostility. 

The governor of the state of Mexico, Lorenzo de Zav- 
ala, was indicted by the grand jury, composed of mem- 
bers of Congress, as a traitor to the Republic, and General 
Filisola was sent with a party of troops, to apprehend 
him. The legislature of the state being in session, pro- 
tested against this arbitrary measure, and the people col- 
lected to defend him ; several conflicts ensued ; the go- 
vernor's mansion was surrounded by the soldiery, who 
were deterred by the crowd from effecting an entrance. 
In the midst of the tumult, Zavala made his escape, and, 
accompanied by a friend, fled to the mountains, from 



232 GUERRERO RECRUITS AN ARMY. 

whence he issued a manifesto in defence of his principles. 
By the flight of Zavala, the province of Mexico was left 
without an executive, and its affairs fell into the greatest 
disorder. Disturbances were also rife in the north. 

On the 6th of April, 1830, the Mexican Congress, who 
had already become jealous of the growing importance 
of Texas, passed a law prohibiting the emigration of 
North Americans into that department. At the same 
time a strong division of troops crossed the Rio Grande, 
and spreading themselves throughout the country, an- 
noyed the inhabitants with their exactions, and increased 
the irritation caused by the distrustful policy of the fede- 
ral government. Congress adjom'ned on the 15th of 
April, leaving the Council of Government and Bustamente 
to rule the nation. The latter had already become a 
centralist, and intoxicated with his power, recognized no 
law superior to his own arbitrary will. 

In September, the legislature of Coahuila and Texas 
was dissolved by force, and the members, who had op- 
posed the tyrannical proceedings of the president, cast 
into prison without trial, and exposed to the greatest 
suffering and indignity. By these, and other acts of 
useless severity, the Mexicans were sowing dragons' 
teeth, which anon were to start up as armed men, and 
drive them beyond the confines of the Texan territory. 

While Bustamente was thus paving the way for his 
own downfall by introducing innovations into the con- 
istitution, and trampling upon the rights of the people, 
the fugitive Guerrero was preparing to regain his author- 
ity by force of arms. He found no great difficulty in 
recruiting an army in Mechoacan, where he had endeared 
himself to the inhabitants by his defence of their lives 
and liberties during the civil wars M'hich terminated in 
the destruction of the Spanish power ; the old veteran, 
whose sword had never rusted in its sheath when the 
welfare of his country demanded its services, now turned 



DEATH OF GUERRERO. 233 

its point against the usurper of his rights, and took the 
field at the head of a formidable body of troops. During 
the winters of 1830-31, the republic was shaken to its 
centre by the struggles of the contending chiefs. The 
representatives in Congress were divided in opinion upon 
the claims of the rivals, and denounced each other with 
all the bitterness peculiar to such assemblies; the people 
of the provinces, who were also arrayed either upon the 
side of " York or Lancaster," awaited the result in anxious 
expectation. Bustamente dispatched a strong division 
against his enemy, and a battle ensued, in which Guerrero 
was defeated, his troops dispersed, and his party annihi- 
lated. Falling into the hands of his adversaries, he was 
summarily tried and condemned by a court martial, or- 
dered by General Montezuma in February, 1831, for bear- 
ing arms against the government, of which he \vas de 
jure the supreme head ! The sentence of the court was 
speedily executed, and the veteran of a hundred battles 
was shot down with as little compunction as if he had 
been a common spy, or a traitor to his colors. 

The murder of this distinguished patriot was one of 
the blackest deeds that ever sullied the annals of any age 
or country. Guerrero had fought, bled, and suffered, in 
the cause of Mexican liberty, keeping its sacred fires 
alive among the marshes on the Zacatula, when they had 
been extinguished elsewhere throughout the land. He 
had withstood the power of Spain unaided and alone, 
when every other leader had succumbed to the enemy, or 
overcome by the adverse current of events, had retired 
from the contest. It was his name and his followers 
which gave to Iturbide the means of shaking off the 
chains that bound Mexico to the Peninsula; to his ex- 
ertions the republic was indebted to its escape from 
the horrors of many a rebellion ; and this was his re- 
ward ! He fell a victim to the diabolical passions of a 
faction, which had first been invoked in his name to 



234 FATE OF THE REVOLUTIONARY CHIEFS. 

protect the sacred cause of which he was the high 
priest ; and with him perished the last hope of the friends 
of the constitution and the federal system. It is a sin- 
gular fact, which distinguishes the history of this country 
from all others, that but a single individual, among the 
host of chiefs who have risen, conquered, and perished, 
has had the happiness of dying in his bed ; his com- 
peers having almost without an exception, fallen by the 
hands of their own countrymen : " revolutions, like the 
god Saturn, devour their own oiTspring." The natural 
consequence this of that ferocity which is always engen- 
dered by civil wars, the actors in them being constrained 
to destroy their rivals that they themselves may live. 



CHAPTER X. 

Fall of Bustamente — Elevation of Gomez Pedraza to the Presidency — 
Struggles of the Factions — Death of General Teran — Santa Anna 
elected President — Zavala's Bill to cut down the revenues of the 
Church — Sudden conversion of Santa Anna — Expenses of the 
Army — Cruel Treatment of the Government to the Texan Envoy. 

After the death of his rival, Bustamente enjoyed his 
triumph for a brief period in tranquillity. In pursuance 
of the policy he had adopted from the beginning of his 
administration, he assumed the authority of a despotic 
prince, relying upon the bayonets of the soldiery for the 
execution of his tyrannical decrees. He had conceived 
an unfavorable opinion of the colonists of Texas, chiefly 
from their known hostility to the changes he was bent 
upon introducing into the constitution. With a view of 
keeping them in subjection, he increased the strength of 
the military in that province, and placed it under the 
command of General Manuel Mier y Teran. The pre- 
sence of the Mexican troops proved a constant source of 
irritation to the Texans, who neither feared or respected a 
government whose existence depended upon the will of 
a hireling soldiery. This feeling was increased by the 
reckless disregard of the commandants for the authority 
of the civil power, which was set aside whenever it con- 
flicted with their designs ; and many outrages were per- 
petrated against the majesty of the laws and the rights 
of the people. Teran rendered himself very obnoxious 
by his endeavors to force the colonists into a compliance 

( 235 ) 



236 DEFEAT OF SANTA ANNA. 

with the commands of the general government, which 
he was bound to obey, so long as he remained in its 
service. The Texans, however, did not venture to resist 
the authority of Mexico, until the retirement of Teranfrom 
the province, with a large portion of the forces under his 
orders. After his departure, the country was left in charge 
of colonels Bradburn,Piedras, and Ugartachea ; the former 
at this period, (1831,) commanded the garrison at Anahuac, 
on Galveston Bay; the two latter were stationed at Na- 
cogdoches and Velasco, where they established custom- 
houses and levied oppressive duties upon all goods import- 
ed for the use of the colonies. 

The tyrannical administration of Bustamente, in the 
mean time, was drawing to its close ; the federalists de- 
nounced him as an enemy to the republic, and soon suc- 
ceeded in arousing the people against him. General Santa 
Anna, believing that the hour had at last arrived which 
was to witness the consummation of his ambitious designs, 
suddenly issued a prominciamento against his former friend, 
and took the field in support of his declarations in the lat- 
ter part of this year. Bustamente advanced to meet him 
with a formidable force; the hostile armies joined battle 
at Tolomi, and the rebels were defeated. With character- 
istic energy, Santa Anna retreated to Vera Cruz, and, re- 
organizing his shattered battalions, prepared to renew the 
struggle. On the 2d of January, 1832, he declared in 
favor of the constitution, and Gomez Pedraza, as president 
of the republic. The revolt soon became general, and 
thousands rushed to the insurgent camp. Bustamente's 
party diminished every hour, and he wisely determined to 
bend to the storm he was incapable of successfully resist- 
ing. Without venturing upon another engagement, he 
demanded a conference with his adversary, which resulted 
in the abdication of his seat and the elevation of Pedraza 
to the supreme authority. 

On the 25th of June, the people living on the Brazos, 



DEFEAT AND DEATH OF TERAN. 237 

exasperated by the exactions of the Mexican officials, made 
an attack upon the fort at Velasco, which capitulated on 
the following day. The garrisons at Anahuac and Nacog- 
doches were also compelled to evacuate the province of 
Texas, which had declared in favor of Santa Anna and the 
constitution, in opposition to the soldiery. This saved the 
country from the horrors of an invasion, — as the disturb- 
ances which had taken place were attributed to the zeal 
of the colonists for the party then in the ascendant. The 
friends of Bustamente continuing to wage an unsuccessful 
war in support of his claims, the whole confederacy was 
thrown into confusion, and scarcely any notice was taken 
of the revolt which had occurred in this obscure and distant 
part of the republic. 

Among those who advocated the central system in 
Mexico, was General Teran, one of the most enterprising 
soldiers of the day, and whose exploits have already been 
recorded. While marching to the relief of his chief, Teran 
encountered General Montezuma, who was a partisan of 
the opposite faction, and a desperate conflict ensued. 
The former was surrounded, and his troops cut in pieces. 
Fighting at the head of his columns with the courage of 
despair, which availed nothing against the overwhelming 
force of the enemy, Teran continued to struggle until all 
hope was lost, when disdaining to save himself by flight 
or yield a prisoner, the heroic Mexican fell upon his own 
sword. 

Notwithstanding the efforts of the centralists, their ad- 
versaries obtained a signal triumph, and Gomez Pedraza 
entered the capital as the chief magistrate of the republic, 
amidst the joyful acclamations of the people. His admi- 
nistration, which continued but a few months, was not 
remarkable for its energy or activity ; the president was a 
mere tool of Santa Anna, who had placed him in office, 
and who was rewarded for the deed by receiving the sup- 
port of the executive as his successor, that general being 



238 SUDDEN CONVERSION OF SANTA ANNA. 

the federal candidate for the presidency. Santa Anna 
was invested with the supreme power in the spring of 
1833, and his elevation was hailed as the consummation 
of the revolution which had re-established the constitution 
and the laws. The hopes of the lovers of peace and good 
government were doomed to meet with a bitter disappoint- 
ment, more poignant from its bursting upon them sud- 
denly, like the eruption of one of their own volcanoes. 

Santa Anna, whose character bears a striking resem- 
blance to that of Lucius Cataline, the Roman conspirator* 
— at first endeavored to reduce the republic to obedience; 
levying a large body of troops for the ostensible purpose 
of defending the constitution, but they were intended to 
participate in its destruction. During the year 1833, sev- 
eral pronunciamentos were issued in favor of centralism by 
the chiefs of that faction. The clergy were also arrayed 
against the administration, and by their intrigues fomented 
disturbances in several parts of the confederacy. The 
discontent of this class was aggravated by an attempt 
made in Congress by the democratic members to reduce 
the revenues of the church. Lorenzo de Zavala, who was 
a representative from Yucatan, introduced a bill to this 
effect into Congress. The priesthood becoming alarmed 
attempted to bribe the member with a large sum of money 
to withdraw his obnoxious measure. This patriotic sena- 
tor refused to listen to them, and they then applied to 
Santa Anna, whose policy was suddenly changed, and 
instead of being a scoffer and an enemy to the church, he 
became one of her most devoted champions, signalizing 
his repentance by marching in solemn state to the shrine 
of the Virgin of Guadalupe! Zavala's bill was crushed by 

*" Corpus patiens inediae, algoris, vigilae, supra quam cuiquam credi- 
bile est. Anamus audax, subdolus, varius, cujuslibit rei simulator ac 
dissimulator, alieni appetens, sui profusus ardens in cupiditatibus ; satis 
loquentias sapientise parum. Vastus animus immoderata, incredibilia, 
nimis alta semper cupiebat. — Sallust de Bel. Jugurthi. 



PETITION OF THE TEXANS. 239 

the President, and its originator appointed minister to 
France. In the autumn of 1833, the enemies of the go- 
vernment took the field and Santa Anna advanced in person 
against them, at the head of a strong division ; while on 
the route to Guanajuato the army proclaimed him dictator. 
He M^as too crafty, however, to accept a title which would 
have exposed him to the attacks of his republican adherents, 
and converted them into foes. After he had succeeded 
in dispersing the forces of the malcontents, he concentra- 
ted the troops in the vicinity of the capital for the pm'pose 
of overawing his colleagues and the people, should they 
attempt to resist his arbitrary designs. The expenses of 
the army during this year, were seventeen millions of 
dollars, an immense sum to be expended in that way, 
when we consider the poverty of the nation, and its pacific 
relations with the neighboring states. 

In the spring of this year the people of Texas, after a 
full examination of their resources and population, and of 
the law and constitution, petitioned the Mexican Congress 
for admission into the confederation as a separate state. 
The empresario, Stephen Austin, was appointed a com- 
missioner to present the claims of the Texans to the 
general government. The congress referred the petition 
to a committee, by w^hom it was consigned to oblivion. 
After remaining in the capital for some months, without 
obtaining an answer to the prayer of those he represented, 
Austin M^rote to the authorities of Bexar, to organize the 
province into a state without waiting for the consent of 
the government. The letter conveying this advice, falling 
into the hands of a treacherous enemy, was sent to Mexico 
from San Antonio de Bexar, and Austin w^as arrested at 
Saltillo, while on his road homewards, taken back to the 
capital and imprisoned for one year, three months of which 
he passed in solitary confinement in a dark dungeon of 
the building formerly appropriated to the dismal uses of 
the inquisition. Nine months elapsed before lie was informed 



240 THE RIGHT OF PETITION. 

of the charges preferred against him ! Thus did Mexico tram- 
ple upon the rights of her citizens, wantonly insulting her 
province by violating the liberty of one who represented 
its inhabitants. The right of petition which is inseparable 
from a condition of political freedom, can in no instance 
be denied without jeopardizing the liberty of a free people; 
and Mexico ceased to be governed by the principles set 
forth in the constitution, the moment her Congress refused 
to consider the prayers of the Texans. The latter were 
filled with indignation by the outrage perpetrated upon 
the person of their commissioner, and it would have required 
no' great prophetic power to have foretold the issue of this 
monstrous policy. Even under these aggravated circum- 
stances the people beyond the Rio Grande refrained from 
making use of the sacred, though dangerous appeal to 
arms, which is the last and only remedy left to freemen, 
when their rulers, possessing both the power and the will, 
refuse to listen to their demands, and trample upon their 
inherent rights. 



BOOK VI. 



CHAPTER I. 

Congress of 1834 — Collusion of the Clergy and the Military to subvert 
the Constitution — Dissensions in the Government — Dissolution of 
Congress by Santa Anna — Disarming of the People — Rising of the 
Provinces — The people of Zacatecas take up Arms — Defeat of the 
Zacatecans by Santa Anna — Decree of 1835 — Revolt of the Texans — 
Capture of Bexar and Goliad. 

The Mexican Congress which convened at the capital 
on the first day of the year 1834, was decidedly republican 
and federal in its character; and strongly prepossessed in 
favor of the distinguished chief whose destiny had placed 
him at the head of the nation. The friends of Busta- 
mente, and the central system, had been driven from the 
field, and their leader himself had withdrawn from the 
republic. Santa Anna and the Vice President, Gomez 
Farias, seemed as happily united in their political opin- 
ions as they were known to be in their social relations. 
The oppressive policy pursued by the preceding admin- 
istration had taught them the danger they were exposed 
to from the ambition of those entrusted with the executive 
authority, and the representatives were determined to 
maintain the principles of the constitution inviolate. 

During the early part of the session the legislative and 
administrative powers labored harmoniously together for 
the public good. The army was devoted to the interests 
16 (241) 



242 INTRIGUES OF THE CLERGY. 

of the government, and kept the factious leaders of the 
opposition from disturbing the repose which reigned in the 
land. There was a certain class, however, who were not 
to be intimidated by the array of armed battalions, or the 
decrees of a republican Senate, from the prosecution of 
an artful policy which had no sympathy with democratic 
institutions. 

The class referred to was the Clergy, who beheld the 
precursor of their own spoliation in the re-establishment 
of the constitution. The bill introduced into Congress by 
Zavala, during the last session, warned them of the danger 
their hoarded treasures were exposed to from the inno- 
vating spirit of democracy, whose tendency is ever onward 
over the ruins of all that is venerable and exclusive in 
human affairs. The leveling doctrines of the Federalists 
had never found favor in the eyes of the spiritual lords 
of Mexico, whose pride acknowledged no temporal supe- 
rior, save he of Rome, and whose power was the growth 
of a different soil from that fertilized by the genial influ- 
ences which flow from the fountain of liberty. 

With many a subtle argument, and many a bribe, they 
gradually undermined the virtue of the feeble patriots 
who listened to their pernicious counsels, and in a few 
weeks they succeeded in swelling the ranks of the Cen- 
tralists, in the Legislature, to a formidable number. A 
majority of the members, however, remained deaf to their 
entreaties, and mindful of their oaths firmly supported the 
constitution and tlie laws, Santa Anna had already grant- 
ed a parley and yielded to their demands, happy in the 
hope of rising to supreme power by the aid of so potent 
an ally, able and willing to shed the odour of sanctity around 
his iniquitous deeds. Gomez Farias was made of differ- 
ent sluff", and stoutly resisted the threats and promises of 
his Janus-faced superior, and his cunning auxiliaries, for 
which his fate was sealed. 

Towards the close of the session, tlie President and Con- 



DESPOTISM OF SANTA ANNA. 243 

gress came in violent collision ; the former assumed pre- 
rogatives which did not belong to him, and the latter 
resisted his encroachments upon the liberties of the people 
with energy and ability. Irritated by the opposition of the 
legislature, Santa Anna, on the 13th of May, 1834, dis- 
solved that body in a most unwarrantable manner. On 
the following day the Council of Government was dispersed 
by a military order of the same personage, thus placing 
the country under the control of a single individual who 
was vicious enough to undo half the world. 

The President had achieved his purpose, and centred 
in his own person the civil and military power of the re- 
public. The army at his disposal overawed the people, 
who beheld their usurpations with impotent rage, and were 
constrained to submit when resistance was hopeless. In 
this dismal kind of freedom the Mexicans passed the re- 
mainder of the year which had opened so gloriously upon 
the nation. 

On the 1st of January, 1835, a new Congress, which had 
been summoned by Santa Anna, assembled at Mexico ; it 
was composed of deputies who were devoted to the inte- 
rests of the clergy, the aristocracy, and the executive. Pe- 
titions were presented from several parts of the country in 
favor of centralism and national reform. These were formed 
by the priests and the military stationed in the provinces, 
who exerted their influence in support of a government pe- 
culiarly their own. Several of the states of the confederacy 
protested against the revolutionary proceedings of the su- 
preme authorities, and called upon congress to maintain the 
constitution. 

The former petitions were graciously received, w^hile the 
latter were disregarded and their authors persecuted and 
imprisoned. The Federalists in congress in vain endeavored 
to stem the tide which was sweeping away every vestige of 
that liberty which had been purchased with the blood of 
thousands. Their venal colleagues derided their remon- 



244 REVOLT OF THE ZACATECANS. 

strances, and consummated their villainy by passing a de- 
cree deposing Gomez Farias, the Vice-President of the 
Republic, without impeachment or trial, and elevating Mi- 
guel Barragan in his place. The former, who was a staunch 
Federalist, was compelled to fly in order to preserve his 
life. This unjust edict was followed by another uniting the 
upper and lower houses into one chamber, which assumed, 
when thus organized, the plenary powers of a national 
convention. In virtue of the authority they had invested 
themselves with, the deputies proceeded to demolish the 
constitution of 1824, and to lay the foundations of a cen- 
tral military despotism upon its ruins. 

In pursuance of this policy, it became necessary to place 
sufficient power in the hands of the supreme executive to 
enforce the decrees of the senate. A law was therefore 
passed, disarming the militia of the several states, so that 
the people, having no means of resistance, would be obliged 
to submit. 

The militia of most countries could be well spared, and 
those of Mexico were not an exception to the citizen sol- 
diery of other lands : it was nevertheless an act of gross 
tyrrany to deprive a nation of the weapons with which the 
government had entrusted them, and it betrayed a want of 
confidence in them insulting alike to their pride as Mexicans 
and their dignity as freemen. Several insurrections followed 
these odious edicts, the inhabitants of Puebla, Jalisco, Oaxa- 
ca, Mexico proper, and Zacatecas took up arms in defence 
of their liberties, but they were unable to stand before the 
trained legions of Santa Anna, which scattered their tumul- 
tuary forces before the thunder of their cannon. In Zacate- 
cas alone, did the people gather around the prostrate altar of 
freedom, with a determination to avenge the wrongs of their 
bleeding country upon the heads of those who had sacrificed 
their rights upon the shrine of bigotry and mammon. 

In the month of April the Zacatecans unfurled the stan- 
dai;d, of the republic, and mustered in strong force within 



DEFEAT OF THE ZACATECANS. 245 

the walls of their opulent city. Santa Anna marched against 
the insurgents with an army composed of the elite of the vete- 
ran troops under his command. The malcontents forti- 
fied a mountain pass a short distance from the town, and 
waited the advance of the enemy behind their works. If 
they had remained in this position, the result of the cam- 
paign would have been different, for the defile leading to 
the city was surrounded by steep and lofty hills, which 
formed an impassable barrier to the approach of a hostile 
party. From some inexplicable reason, the patriots left 
this secure station, and marching into a small plain be- 
tween the pass and the convent of the Friars of Guadal- 
upe, encamped in an exposed situation.* Santa Anna 
soon made his appearance, and pitched his tents on the 
opposite extremity of the valley, which was scarcely a mile 
in width. For several days the two armies remained in 
sight of each other, neither willing to begin the bloody 
fray upon which so much depended. 

The Zacatecans becoming careless sent their cavalry 
out of the camp to graze their horses, and relaxing the 
vigilance so essential to their safety, slumbered heavily, uncon- 
scious of danger. At the dead of night Santa Anna mustered 
his men, and advancing in silence along the edge of the plain 
close to the base of the mountains, he threw a strong division 
between the sleeping patriots and the city. About the dawn 
of day, as the light of a May morning was trembling in the 
east, the stillness was broken by the startling report of the ene- 
my's cannon, volley after volley was poured in rapid suc- 
cession into the disordered ranks of the Zacatecans, who sud- 
denly awakened to the dread reality of their condition, ran 
to and fro in the utmost confusion and were shot down by 
the fire upon their front and rear. A small number of the 
patriots forming in line of battle returned the enemy's volleys 

* It is said that the Zacatecans were decoyed into the plain by the 
treachery of their leader, who was, it is asserted, in the confidence 
of Santa Anna. 



246 DESPOTISM OF GENERAL COS. 

with such success that he was forced to fall back with the loss 
of several hundred killed and wounded. Renewing the 
charge with augmented numbers, the Zacatecans surrounded 
upon all sides were compelled to throw down their arms and 
cry for quarter. The victorious general entered the town with 
his troops, who committed the most horrid excesses; women 
were openly violated, their husbands and brothers who sought 
to protect them, cut in pieces before their eyes; the narrow 
streets were filled with blood, and neither age nor sex escaped 
the rude assaults of the rapacious and licentious soldiery. 

Disarming the people, and placing a military governor 
over the province, Santa Anna, elated with his late victory, 
now turned his energies toward the conquest of Texas, in the 
hope of adding to the glory which had already dazzled 
the eyes of his countrymen. The legislatures of the States of 
Coahuila and Texas had been disturbed for the past year by 
the contests of the Federalists and Centralists, the latter had 
retired from Monclova, the capital of the province, to Saltillo, 
where they had organized an opposition government, denounc- 
ing their colleagues as enemies to the supreme authority of 
the Mexican nation, represented by General Santa Anna and 
the vice-president Don Miguel Barragan. The Federalists 
continued to meet at Monclova and elected Augustin Viesca, 
governor of the commonwealth, who entered upon his duties 
in defiance of the threats of the hostile faction, who had ap- 
pointed a military man to the executive office. The affairs 
of the state were in this condition, when General Cos, who 
commanded the troops cantoned at Saltillo, issued a mani- 
festo breathing vengeance against Viesca and his supporters, 
whom he accused of opposing the decree for disarming of the 
militia, and of secreting the person of Gomez Farias. For 
these, and other misdemeanors, General Cos dispersed the le- 
gislature by force of arms, and seizing Viesca and his suite, 
Avho were flying toward the Rio Grande, he cast them into 
prison where they remained at his mercy. The Texans be- 
held these proceedings with ill-disguised indignation, and 



DECREE OF NEW ORGANIZATION. ^Hlf 

when the Mexican troops subsequently entered the province, 
they determined to resist even unto death. 

Such was the posture of the frontiers when the plan of To- 
luca was published, which abolished the Federal system and 
established the Central consolidated government upon its 
wreck. The outlines of the new organization as promulga- 
ted in a decree of a later period is as follows : 

"His Excellency, the President ad interim of the Mexican 
United States, to the inhabitants of the Republic. Know ye that 
the General Congress has decreed the following: 

"Art. 1st. The present governors of the states shall continue, 
notwithstanding the time fixed by the constitution may have ex- 
pired ; but they shall be dependent for the exercise of their at- 
tributes upon the supreme authority of the nation. 

" Art. 2d. The legislatures shall immediately cease to exercise 
their legislative functions ; but before dissolving they shall ap- 
point a department council composed for the present of five 
individuals, chosen either within or without their own body, to 
act as a council to the governor ; and in case of a vacancy in 
that office, they shall propose to the supreme general government 
three persons possessed of the qualifications hitherto required ; 
and until an appointment be made, the gubernatorial powers shall 
be exercised by the first on the list who is not an ecclesiastic. 

" Art. 3d. In those states where the legislature cannot be 
assembled within eight days, the Ayuntamiento* of the capital 
shall act in its place only for the purpose of electing the five in- 
dividuals of the department council. 

" Art. 4th. All the judges and tribunals of the states, and 
the administration of justice, shall continue as hitherto, until the 
organic law relative to this branch be formed. The responsibil- 
ities of the functionaries, which could only be investigated before 
Congress, shall be referred to and decided before the supreme 
court of the nation. 

"Art. 5th. All the subaltern officers of state shall also con- 
* Municipal authorities. 



248 MILITARY DESPOTISM. 

tinue for the present, (the places which are vacant, or may be 
vacated, not to be filled ) but they, as vv^ell as the officers, reve- 
nues, and branches under their charge, shall remain subject to, 
and at the disposal of, the supreme government of the nation, 
by means of their respective governors. God and liberty. 
City of Mexico, Oct. 3, 1835. 

( Signed ) MIGUEL BARRAGAN, 

President ad interim. 

M. DIAS DE BONILLA, . 

Secretary Interior Departrn't" 

This despotic edict overthrew all the barriers erected 
for the protection of the masses against their rulers, let- 
ting in upon them once more the stygian waters of a 
bygone age, which were to nourish the foul seeds of 
superstition, ignorance, and slavery. It may be wondered 
at that the Mexicans would submit to so gross an outrage 
upon their liberties without a struggle, but when we re- 
flect that more than four millions of their mongrel popu- 
lation is composed of semi-barbarous Indians, and that 
another three millions consists of various castes, who boast 
of every shade of color, our wonder must cease, and pity 
assume the place of scorn. 

The republic was now under the sway of a military 
despot, who, supported by fifteen thousand bayonets, and 
as many shaven crowns, bade defiance to the world, 
and swelling with exultation, announced himself the Na- 
poleon of the south. The people, filled with consterna- 
tion, obeyed his mandates in silence, and like men tem- 
pest tost at sea, without chart or compass, or a beacon 
to guide them on their way, they lost all hope and sub- 
milted themselves to every passing wind. Yet had they 
looked to the north they would have seen a single star 
shining through the cheerless gloom, which, had they 
followed, would have guided them in safety into the 
Jiaven which in the olden time sheltered the barks of 
their Scythian ancestors. 



CAPTURE OF GOLIAD. 249 

General Cos entered Texas at the close of September, 
and threw a strong force into the town of San Antonio 
de Bexar, and prepared to enforce the requisitions of the 
government, demanding in addition, the surrender of Lo- 
renzo de Zavala — who had resigned his mission to France 
and had retired to this province — as a traitor to the re- 
public. To this the Texans demurred, and mustered to 
resist the Mexican troops, should they persist in attempt- 
ting to coerce them to obey the iniquitous mandates of 
the central power. Committees of safety and vigilance 
were organized throughout the colonies, and every weapon 
prepared for the contest. On the 27th, Captain Castonado 
appeared with a small division before the town of Gon- 
zales, a place on the eastern bank of the Rio Guadalupe, 
and made a formal demand in the name of the political 
chief of Bexar, for the deliverance of a piece of ord- 
nance which had been entrusted to their keeping. He 
was told to await the return of the Alcalde, and in the 
meantime encamped upon a plain on the opposite bank 
of the river. The Texans crossed the stream in the evening, 
and an action was fought on the following morning, 
in which the Mexicans were defeated and put to the 
rout. 

At midnight, on the 9th of October, a party of Texans fifty 
two in number, attacked the strong fortress of Goliad, and 
after a short contest carried it by storm, capturing two brass 
field-pieces, three hundred stand of muskets, twenty one pris- 
oners, and ten thousand dollars worth of munitions and stores. 
In the latter end of the same month an army of Texans under 
General Austin, advanced upon the city of Bexar ; it was 
composed of planters residing upon the Brazos and tlie 
Guadalupe, who had mustered in haste, at the call of their 
country, and were unprovided with the artillery necessary to 
reduce a town of such strength. On the 28th of October a corps 
of observation consisting of ninety-two men under Colonels 
Fannin and Bowie, encountered a division of four hundred 



250 CAPTURE OF BEXAR. 

Mexicans near the Mission of Conception, and after a bril- 
liant engagement during which both parties displayed great 
courage, the enemy's cannon were silenced, and his forces 
driven from the field, with loss. These reverses rendered 
the besieged more cautious, and confident of their ability to 
defend the place they remained behind its walls. The 
Empresario attempted to open a communication with General 
Cos, but he was told by that personage that he could hold 
no conference with the Texans whilst they remained in arms 
against his authority. Failing in this, tbe former laid formal 
siege to the city in the hope of bringing the haughty Mexican 
to terms. 

On the 3d of November, 1835, the delegates of the people 
assembled at San Felipe de Austin, and issued a solemn de- 
claration against " Gen. Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna, and 
other military chieftains, who had, by force of arms, over- 
thrown the Federal institutions of Mexico, and dissolved the 
social compact which existed between Texas and the other 
members of the Mexican Confederacy." Asserting that the 
Texans had taken up arms in defence of the Constitution of 
1824 : and that they would not cease to carry on the war 
while the centralist troops remained in the province. 

On the 8th of the same month another action was fought 
near Bexar, in which the enemy were worsted and driven into 
the town. These continued successes raised the spirits of 
the assailants, and taught them to despise the courage of Cos 
and his myrmidons ; and after defeating them again on the 
26th they determined to take the town by storm, albeit they 
were without battering cannon, or heavy ordnance, for breach- 
ing the walls. On the 5th of December — having been rein- 
forced by some volunteers from the United States, they 
attacked Bexar with a division of three hundred men under 
Colonel Milam, who forced their way into the great square, 
and after a desperate struggle obliged the enemy to retire 
within the fortress of the Alamo, on the opposite bank of the 
river which runs through the city. Receiving a reinforcement 



CAPITULATION OF GENERAL COS. 251 

of three hundred men under Ugartachea, Cos raisedthe "black 
flag" and opened a tremendous fire from the guns of the fort. 
Day and night he kept up an incessant discharge, which was 
answered by the besiegers with equal energy, and more effect. 
The struggle continued with undiminished ardor for several 
days, the Mexicans fighting with desperate courage, and their 
foes with the perseverance" of men determined to conquer. 
The ceaseless roll of the enemy's cannon proclaimed the en- 
ergy of his resistance, but the besiegers were not to be driven 
from their purpose. Finding it useless to contend against 
such active assailants, General Cos becoming disheartened 
struck the black ensign, raised the snowy emblem of peace, 
and vouchsafed a parley. Commissioners were appointed to 
treat for a surrender, and on the 11th, a formal capitulation 
was signed, by w^hich the Mexican general and the thirteen 
hundred men under his command were allowed to retire be- 
yond the Rio Grande. The sick and wounded were permitted 
to remain under charge of the medical staff of their own army. 
The money, arms, public stores, and munitions were deliver- 
ed up to the victors ; who restored the property which had 
been taken from the people of Bexar to those who claimed it. 
The campaign terminated with the fall of the Alamo, and the 
Texans retired to their homes leaving a small force to garri- 
son the town. 



CHAPTER II. 

Mexia's Expedition against Tampico — Death of twenty-eight of his 
Men — Santa Anna invades Texas — Siege of the Alamo — Brave- 
ry of the Garrison — Fall of the Alamo — Organization of a sepa- 
rate Government in Texas — That State Declares her Independence 
— Retreat of the Texans — Advance of the Mexicans — Battle of 
San Jacinto — Capture of Santa Anna. 

On the 13th of November, 1835, General Mexia lan- 
ded at Tampico at the head of a hundred and thirty 
men, two-thirds of whom were Americans, and being join- 
ed by a party of Mexicans, he made an attack upon the 
defences of the place, and carried it by assault. His men, 
however, were no soldiers, and had been trepanned into 
the service by a treacherous agent at New Orleans, having 
been decoyed to Tampico when they anticipated landing in 
Texas. 

Mexia issued a pronunciamento against Santa Anna, 
which being coldly received, the officer in command of the 
city recovered from his panic, and recaptured the fort, the 
strangers throwing down their arms and surrendering with- 
out a blow. The leaders of the expedition fled, leaving 
their men at the mercy of the enemy. The latter were tried 
by a court martial, and twenty-eight of their number were 
put to death, although they solemnly denied all knowledge 
of the designs of Mexia in disturbing the tranquillity of 
the country. 

The forced evacuation of Texas by General Cos, and 
the attempt of Mexia upon Tampico, hastened tlie prepa- 
ration of Santa Anna for the subjugation of the rebellious 

(252) 



DEFENCE OP THE ALAMO. 253 

province. With great difficulty, and the expenditure of 
much treasure, he mustered an army of ten thousand men, 
which was supported by a heavy train of artillery. In a 
fatal hour the order for the invasion was issued, and placing 
himself at the head of his columns, Santa Anna crossed the 
Rio Grande. Passing with celerity through the treeless 
plains lying to the eastward of that stream, the advanced 
guard of the Mexican army suddenly appeared before the 
walls of San Antonio de Bexar, on the 21st of February, 
1836, and entering the town, drove the Texans into the 
Alamo. So unexpected had been their approach, that the 
latter were taken by surprise, and so entirely unprepared 
for a siege, that they had not three bushels of corn for their 
subsistence. General Sezma summoned them to surrender 
at discretion, upon pain of being put to the sword. Colo- 
nel Travis, w^ho commanded the Texans, answered this de- 
mand with a cannon shot, and announced his determination 
never to surrender or retreat! 

On the 23d the Mexicans opened their batteries and 
plied them with unremitting energy ; but the walls Of the 
fortress were strong, and the missiles fell harmless upon 
them. The day after. Col. Travis called upon his compa- 
triots in the name of liberty, of patriotism, and of every 
thing dear to the American character, to come to his aid 
with all dispatch. He closed his manly appeal in language 
worthy of a Leonidas; — " Though this call may be neglected, 
I am determined to sustain myself as long as possible, and 
die like a soldier, who never forgets what is due to his own 
honor and that of his country!" The enemy continuing to 
receive reinforcements, invested the fortress on all sides ; 
the air was darkened wdth the constant shower of shot and 
shell poured into the devoted fort. The Texans, after 
fighting ten days, had not lost a single man, while hundreds 
of their foes lay festering upon the plain. On the 1st of 
March the besieged were reinforced by a company of thirty- 
two men from Gonzales, which swelled their number to a 



254 INVESTMENT OF THE ALAMO. 

hundred and fifty. This was the only aid they received 
during the struggle ; Colonel Fannin, who was at Goliad, 
thirty leagues distant, had attempted to march to the re- 
lief of Bexar with a division of four hundred men, but 
had been compelled to forego the enterprise and take care 
of himself. The rear guard of his army arriving upon the 
scene, Santa Anna raised a " blood red banner " upon the 
church of Bexar and in his camp, in token of his waging 
a war of vengeance and extermination against the rebel- 
lious Texans, who had defied his power and laughed his 
threats to scorn. Notwithstanding the efforts which were 
made by the Mexican troops for the reduction of the for- 
tress, its old walls still frowned defiance, and the flag of 
its defenders still waved proudly above the smoke and 
din of the fierce battle which roared beneath. 

Aware of the danger of leaving a stronghold, like the 
Alamo, garrisoned by such desperate men in his rear, Gene- 
ral Santa Anna resolved to attempt to carry it by storm, 
at any sacrifice. The Texans, worn out and dispirited by 
constant watching and fatigue, were reposing upon their 
faithful rifles ; the red glare of the enemy's fires shone 
dimly through the murky air, and the shrill cry of his sen- 
tinels mingled with the dismal howl of the wolf; when the 
silence of midnight was broken by the dull tramp of the 
advancing foe. As the besieged looked over the walls, 
they beheld the dark masses which composed the columns 
of attack creeping slowly onward, like a huge serpent, 
about to crush them in its deadly folds. During this me- 
morable day, the 5th of March, they had fought with their 
usual vigor, and as they had by this time given up all 
hope of receiving succours from their compatriots, they 
looked death in the face and sternly awaited his approach. 
Placing his bravest men in the front, the Mexican leader 
gave the signal for the assault, the trumpets sounded a 
charge and they rushed on to the walls. With a shout 
which rent the air, and rose high above the enemy's bu- 




IBM 



iBH! 

||}[S)[a}[S] 



STORMING OF THE ALAMO. 257 

gles, the Texans applied their matches to their guns, and 
a broad sheet of flame lighted up the scene, for an instant 
revealing the swarthy faces of the Mexicans, distorted by 
terror and the hateful passion of revenge, as they crowded 
below the walls in the vain endeavor to plant their scaling- 
ladders. 

A storm of iron hail rained down upon them, and beat 
whole battalions to the ground, and forced back the dusky 
swarm upon their supporting columns. Again the Mexican 
trumpets rang out the charge, and again did the veterans of 
Zacatecas and Vera Cruz advance upon the cannon of the 
fort; volley after volley rolled in ceaseless thunder from 
their brazen mouths, mingled with the sharp rattle of the 
Texan rifles. Already had Santa Anna lost a thousand of 
his best troops, and still the besieged shouted defiance. — 
Travis, wounded and bleeding, yet stood upon the bat- 
tlements, waving his bloody sword above his head, en- 
couraging his men to fight to the last gasp. Conscious 
of ultimately triumphing over his desperate enemy, the Mexi- 
can leader pushed on his columns, and marked the rapidly 
diminishing number of the Texans with savage exultation.. 
After many abortive efforts, the besiegers finally succeeded 
in planting their ladders against the walls, and as the stars 
began to pale before the light of coming day, they mount- 
ed the defence and poured over them in a resistless stream. 
Discharging the contents of their rifles into the advancing- 
mass, the few Texans who still survived grasped their 
weapons by the barrels and beat down the foremost ranks. 
The death struggle was very brief, in a little time but seven 
haggard beings could be seen ; weakened by the loss of 
blood, and exhausted by the unequal combat, they cried 
for quarter. The Mexicans refused to spare them. Re- 
treating to an angle of the Alamo, and placing their backs 
to the walls, they continued to defend themselves with 
their knives, until they fell in the arms of death upon the 
gory pile of enemies their valor had raised about them. 
17 



•258 MASSACRE OF THE TEXANS. 

Their bodies were stripped naked, and after some of them 
had been barbarously mutilated, they were heaped together 
and burned. 

The capture of the Alamo cost Santa Anna fifteen hun- 
dred of his best men, and convinced him of the difficulty 
he must encounter in subduing a country defended by such 
desperate and valiant soldiers. Impressed with this idea, 
he dispatched a messenger to General Houston, who was 
then mustering an army at Gonzales, offering the Texans 
peace if they would lay down their arms and submit. — 
His offer was rejected with disdain. On the 18th of 
March, Colonel Fannin, with a division of three hundred 
troops, was attacked in an open plain by General Urea, at 
the head of a strong body of cavalry and infantry. Sur- 
rounded on all sides, the party commanded by Fannin 
fought under many disadvantages for several hours, and 
kept the enemy at a distance by the coolness and accuracy 
with which they delivered their fire. Night found the hostile 
forces in this position. On the following morning the Tex- 
ans capitulated, under a solemn guarantee of being treated 
with respect, and being sent to the United States as soon 
as means of transportation could be procured. Major Ward, 
of the Georgia battalion, who had been sent to the mission 
of Refugio with his command, to reinforce a company under 
Captain King, was compelled to retreat, and finally to sur- 
render to an overwhelming force. The prisoners were dis- 
armed, and marched back to Goliad on the evening of the 
19th, and confined in the chapel of the fortress. 

After suffering every privation and indignity that could 
be heaped upon them, the Texans, four hundred in number, 
were massacred in cold blood by the orders of the Mexican 
general-in-chief. 

While these brave men were thus devoting themselves to 
death upon the Rio San Antonio, the authorities of the pro- 
vince were engaged in debating the details of a constitution, 
and did not send a single man to the relief of the garrisons 



DISSENSIONS AMONG THE TEXANS. 259 

of Goliad and Bexar. This criminal apathy was inexcusable, 
and can never be forgotten by the friends of those brave men. 
On the 2d of March, 1836, the representatives of the people 
of Texas assembled at Washington on the Brazos, and made 
a formal declaration of independence, and after signing the 
constitution, organized a provisional government. The ene- 
my leaving a strong force at Bexar, under General Andrade, 
marched in three divisions toward the eastern settlements. 
The advance guard, consisting of eight hundred men com- 
manded by General Sezma, appeared upon the Colorado and 
encamped opposite the Texans under Houston, whose army 
was then nearly double that of the former. Retreating to the 
Brazos they avoided an engagement with the Mexicans, who 
occupied the whole country between their position and the 
coast. The troops, upon whose conduct at this crisis the 
salvation of Texas depended, were reduced by this time to a 
fraction above eight hundred men, and whole companies 
deserted the army during the retreat from the Colorado. 
Those who remained were dissatisfied with the plans of their 
leader, who wished to fall back upon the Sabine and reinforce 
his division with the " five thousand sleeping rifles" from the 
frontiers of Louisiana. This policy was violently opposed 
by those who resided upon the Brazos and neighboring 
streams, and the camp exhibited a scene of distraction and 
tumultuous confusion which would have proved highly grati- 
fying to the enemy, could they have witnessed it. Through 
the prudent exertions of General Rusk, order and discipline 
were finally restored, and a compromise effected between 
Houston and his command. 

The main body of the Mexican troops, four thousand 
in number, under General Filisola, were on the lower part 
of the Brazos, pillaging the towns and plantations, and 
spreading desolation on every side. This wing of the corps 
(T armee was composed of the divisions of Urea, Sezma, and 
Gaona ; their soldiery were suffering for want of supplies, 
and exhausted by fatiguing marches across the wet and 



260 BATTLE OF SAN JACINTO. 

marshy plains. Another corps, commanded by Santa Anna 
and Cos, were on the San Jacinto, fifty miles distant, burn- 
ing and destroying the property of the fugitive Texans. — 
Breaking up his camp on the 15th of April, Houston made a 
forced march in pursuit of the enemy, and moving day and 
night, on the 20th bivouacked upon the San Jacinto. While 
engaged in slaughtering cattle, the Texans — who had eaten 
nothing for forty-eight hours — were startled by the approach 
of Santa Anna's army. Halting his men in a clump of 
woods, the Mexican leader opened a fire upon the former 
from a brass twelve pounder. His infantry attempted to 
charge under cover of the cannonade, but were repulsed by 
a volley from the hostile lines. Retiring a short distance, 
they encamped with their right resting upon a belt of timber, 
which skirted the river; their left was protected by a breast- 
work hastily constructed of packs and camp equipage, an 
opening in the centre was occupied by the ordnance ; while 
a squadron of cavalry were picketed upon the plain on the 
extreme left of the whole. The position was an excellent 
one, and as strong as the prudence of Santa Anna deemed 
necessary ; in fact his troops, elated with their late successes, 
could scarcely be restrained within the lines. This was 
also the case with the Texans, who made a demonstration 
with their cavalry about sunset, but were forced to retire, 
with the loss of several horses and two men badly wounded. 
At 9 o'clock on the following day, General Cos formed a 
junction with his leader, swelling his force to fifteen hundred 
men. At half past three o'clock, on the afternoon of the 
21st, the Texan army, consisting of seven hundred infantry 
and sixty-one cavalry, were drawn up in battle array. The 
horsemen, under Colonel Lamar, were thrown in advance of 
the enemy's left; the artillery (two six pounders ) was posted 
within two hundred yards of the Mexican camp, and open- 
ed a destructive fire of grape and canister, under cover of 
Avhich the infantry, commanded by Colonels Sherman and 
Burleson, advanced in double quick time. The Mexicans 



CAPTURE OF SANTA ANNA. 261 

endeavored to check their progress by a volley from their 
lines, which being badly delivered, proved ineffectual. — 
Shouting the war cry of "Remember the Alamo," the Tex- 
ans charged within point blank shot before they answered 
the enemy's fire, when they discharged their pieces, and 
rushing into the Mexican camp, encountered them hand to 
hand, and drove them in dismay from the field. The whole 
plain was covered with the fugitives, who threw down their 
arms and cried for quarter. The cavalry pursued them, 
and cut them down by hundreds, until night closed the 
bloody scene. The Mexican loss in this battle was six 
hundred and thirty killed, two hundred and eighty wounded, 
and seven hundred and thirty prisoners. Colonel Almonte 
was taken on the same evening, General Santa Anna on the 
22d, and General Cos on the 24th, but a small number es- 
caping from the fatal rout of San Jacinto. The Texan loss 
was six killed and twenty-three wounded ; while the ene- 
my's dead and dying covered the plain in all directions. 



CHAPTER III. 

Santa Anna agrees to recognize the Independence of Texas — Retreat 
of Filisola — Santa Anna is sent to the United States — His return 
to Mexico — Second administration of Bustamente — The French 
Blockade Vera Cruz — Description of San Juan de Ulloa — Bom- 
bardment of the Castle — Santa Anna's Gallantry — Revolution of 
1841 — General Canales, 

By the overthrow of Santa Anna at San Jacinto, the 
campaign was ended, and the Texans were too cautious 
to risk a battle with the main army of the Mexicans, with 
the small number of men then in the field. The captive 
president of Mexico offered his services to prevent the fur- 
ther effusion of blood, and in conjunction with Filisola, 
Urea, Gaona, and Sezma, signed a treaty on the 14th of 
May, 1836, by which he bound himself to " solemnly ac- 
knowledge, sanction, and ratify the full, entire and perfect 
independence of Texas. " Solemnly pledging himself with 
his personal and official powers to procure, without delay, 
the final and complete ratification and confirmation of the 
treaty, by the proper and legitimate government of Mexico. 

The boundaries of Texas were declared to be as follows : 
" Beginning at the mouth of the Rio Grande ; thence up 
the principal stream of said river to its source ; thence due 
north, to the 42d degree of north latitude ; thence along the 
boundary line, as defined in the treaty between the United 
States and Spain, ( February, 1819,) to the beginning. " 

The Texans, upon their part, agreed to spare the lives 
of Santa Anna and his fellow captives ; to send the former 
to Vera Cruz as soon as practicable, and to furnish General 
(262) 



SANTA ANNA SENT TO THE UNITED STATES. 263 

Filisola with supplies during his retreat to the frontiers. — 
The treaty was signed by the Mexican leaders, and the 
forces which had entered Texas with such hopes of glorious 
triumphs, began their march homewards, a demoralized mass 
of worn-out, weather-beaten, dispirited wretches. 

In the early part of June, the president of Mexico em- 
barked at Velasco, on board of a small vessel, which he 
fondly anticipated was to bear him from the land which 
had witnessed his humiliation. "While lying at the mouth 
of the Brazos, waiting for a wind. General Green arrived at 
the river with a division of troops lately enlisted. In viola- 
tion of the treaty, he was forced on shore, and compelled to 
exhibit himself as a spectacle to the soldiery who lined the 
banks of the stream. Against this outrage Santa Anna issued 
a protest, in language which proclaimed the injury his pride 
had received. By this conduct the Texans infringed the 
articles of compact, and it cannot be wondered at that the 
Mexican followed their example, especially when we remem- 
ber that the fallen chief was in the power of those who 
thirsted for his blood ; the firmness of President Burnet alone 
saving him from an ignominious, perhaps a cruel death. 

In December, 1836, Santa Anna was sent to the United 
States, where he had an interview with the venerable chief 
magistrate of the republic, who subsequently treated him 
with great kindness and consideration, which was due to his 
misfortunes, rather than to his rank or achievements. It is 
but an act of justice to the reputation of Santa Anna to state, 
that while in Washington he endeavored to exculpate him- 
self from any participation in the massacre at Goliad, by 
asserting that it was the law of Mexico to put to death all 
persons taken in arms against the government, and that 
General Urea obeyed the commands of that law, and not 
his general-in-chief, when he butchered Fannin and his men 
in so cold blooded and inhuman a manner. Had the Mexi- 
cans conquered at San Jacinto, not a Texan would have 
been permitted to live after he had surrendered a prisoner 



264 RETURN OF BUSTAMENTE, 

of war ; hundreds of the former escaped to bless the Virgin 
that the latter were not savages like themselves. 

In the early part of 1837, Santa Anna returned to 
Mexico, in the U. S. brig Pioneer, and seeking the shelter 
of his hacienda of Manga de Clavo, he hid himself from the 
world, and nursed his chagrin in solitude. Don Miguel 
Barragan, the Vice-President, had administered the govern- 
ment during his absence, and endeavored to carry out the 
policy of his chief; but it required the strong arm of the 
latter to keep the people in subjection ; the federalists con- 
tinued to oppose the executive power, and disorder, anarchy, 
and confusion reigned from Santa Fe to Yucatan. Difficul- 
ties threatened the nation from abroad ; France had de- 
manded the payment of a long standing debt, and the ex- 
chequer was empty, the expenses of the army consuming 
the revenues of the state, which should have been appro- 
priated to more legitimate purposes. When Bustamente, 
who had been driven into exile, heard of the reverses of 
his rival, he returned to Mexico, and denouncing him and 
his policy, aroused the discontented populace, and suc- 
ceeded in placing himself once more at the head of affairs, 
as president of the republic. This personage repudiated the 
idea of keeping faith with the revolted province, which had 
caused the loss of so much treasure, and so many men 
to Mexico. He therefore, in accordance with his own 
views, and the public sentiment of the nation, resolved to 
overwhelm the people of that remote and obscure territory, 
by sending an army against them whose triumphs should 
wipe out the disgrace of the Mexican arras. 

The worn and dejected appearance of Filisola's divi- 
sion, which had returned " bootless back, and weather- 
beaten home, " frightened the soldiery of the republic, and 
they refused to receive a spark of the chivalrous patriotism 
which lighted up the soul of Bustamente ; who, warned by 
the fate of his predecessor, remained at the capital, while 
he sent General Bravo to Saltillo, to take command of the 



FINANCIAL DIFFICULTIES. 265 

forces intended for the re-invasion of Texas. A few bat- 
talions of undisciplined, mutinous troops, without supplies or 
munitions, were collected at this point, where they remained, 
the government being unable to furnish them with the 
means of taking the field. 

After vainly attempting to organize these expeditionary 
troops Bravo resigned in disgust, convinced of the inability of 
the supreme authority to fulfill its vindictive threats against 
the rebellious heretics, who relying upon their rifles and the 
justice of their cause had already conquered the elite of the 
Mexican veterans. The proposed campaign was therefore 
indefinitely postponed ; Bustamente and his rivals using the 
Texas difficulties as a stalking-horse, whereon they paraded, 
whenever they wished to conceal their own misdeeds from 
the public eye, or to raise supplies for other purposes. The 
administration soon became exceedingly unpopular, monopo- 
lies and prohibitory imposts injured the manufacturing and 
commercial interests, and the oppressive exactions of the im- 
poverished government bore heavily upon all classes. A 
financial crisis was at hand, which threatened to ruin the 
country ; the famous mines of Zacatecas, Guanajuato, Durango 
and the department of Mexico had been long declining, and 
now scarcely produced thirteen millions per annum.* Foreign 
nations were clamorous for the payment of indemnities long 
since due, and their demands served to increase the general 
discontent which hung like a cloud over the land. 

The affairs of Mexico were in this miserable condition, 
when the French fleet under Admiral Baudin appeared before 
Vera Cruz, bearing a demand for immediate satisfaction for 
injuries received and claims unsettled. The Mexican of- 

* The proceeds of the principal mines* were as follows. Zacatecas 
$5,028,655. Guanajuato $3,476,820. Mexico $2,004,988. Du- 
rango $876,287. Guadalaxara $908,052. Chihuahua $568,056. 
Total amount $13,979,714. In 1803, these same mines yielded 
$23,000,000. One of gold, and twenty-two silver. 

*The mines of Oaxaca belong to an English company, they yield six percent 



266 REVOLT OF MEXIA. 

ficials are admirable diplomatists, they can spin out a nego- 
tiation and involve an unsuspicious envoy in so many diffi- 
culties, that he needs the thread of Ariadne to make his escape 
from the mazes of the political labyrinth into which they have 
entangled him. The French had become wearied with th6 
dilatory policy of the Republic, and impatiently demanded 
redress, regardless of the promises of their feeble yet wily 
debtors. Bustamente was unable in the then distracted state 
of the country, either to comply with the requisitions of 
France, or to place the defences of Vera Cruz in a condition 
to repel a hostile force. 

In 1828, General Mexia pronounced in favor of the federal 
system, and took up arms in defence of his principles. 
Santa Anna, who was entrusted with the command of the go- 
vernment troops, marched against him, and gaining a signal 
victory dispersed the enemy and took Mexia prisoner, and 
put him to death on the spot. " Santa Anna is right," said 
the captive when he received his sentence, " I should have 
served him in the same manner, had I been the victor." 

The French squadron, in the meantime, blockaded the 
port of Vera Cruz, and at once cut off the revenues drawn 
from that opulent city. The hostile fleet remained in the 
harbor and off the coast, during the winters of 1838-9, 
without attacking the town or castle, in the hope that the 
Mexicans would comply with their just demands. This 
moderation, however, only confirmed the obstinate determi- 
nation of the administration not to yield to a foreign power. 
Troops were marched into the city, and preparations were 
made for defence, should the enemy attempt to carry the 
place. General Santa Anna was appointed to the impor- 
tant trust of commandant-general of the department, and 
relying upon the strength of their fortifications, the Mexicans 
challenged the French to do their worst. 

The principal work of defence at Vera Cruz is the castle 
of San Juan de Ulloa, which, standing in front of the city, 
protects it from assault. The foundations of this celebrated 




PLAN OF THE SIEGE OF VERA CRUZ, BY THE FRENCH. 



1, Castle of San Juan. 

2, Gallega Reef. 
3,4, Shoals. 

5, Bomb Vessels. 



6, 7, 8, 9, French Fleet. 

10, Corvette Creole. 

11, Shoals. 




DESCRIPTION OF SAN JUAN DE ULLOA. 



A. Bastion de la Soledad. E, F, G, H, J, Water Batteries. 

B. « « « Santiago. N. Cavalier — a high Tower. 

C. « « San Pedro. I. Officers' Quarters. 

D. « « San Crispan. 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, Powder Magazines. 



II, 12,13,14, Landings. 
15, Entrance. 
LL, AIM, Glacis. 
KK, Battery. 



ATTACK ON SAN JUAN DE ULLOA. 271 

fortress are laid upon a coral reef below the surface of the 
sea, which in winter dashes in impotent fury against its firm 
walls. To sea-ward extends the Gallega reef and shoal, 
securing it from approach in that direction ; more than two 
hundred pieces of heavy ordnance frown from its battle- 
ments and surrounding batteries. The parapets are of ma- 
sonry, and the ditches are wide and covered with water. — 
The relief is about forty feet. It is eight hundred yards 
from the city, the harbor lying between the castle and the 
main land. 

The French becoming weary of the blockade, resolved 
to make an attack upon the fortress, and by that means 
force the Mexicans into measures. In the early part of 
1839, the hostile fleet, consisting of three frigates, the Iphe- 
genie of 60 guns, the Neveide of 52 guns, and the La 
Gloire of 52 guns ; one corvette, the Creole of 20 guns, 
commanded by the Prince de Joinville, and two bomb ves- 
sels, mounting four heavy mortars, prepared for the assault. 
The Mexicans allowed the enemy to tow their ships into 
position without firing a single shot at them, doubtless being 
under the delusion that their cannon would thunder in vain 
against the massive walls. They soon had reason, however, 
to change their opinion, when the fleet opened a fire from 
ninety-two guns upon their stronghold, which was shaken to 
its foundations by the storm of deadly missiles which fell upon 
its bastions and ancient towers. 

Forced into activity, the garrison answered with a peal 
of ordnance, which warned the enemy that they had awakened 
from their apathy. The battle raged for several hours, the 
air was obscured with smoke and shot, and the shouts of the 
combatants, mingled with the sullen roar of the artillery, 
echoed along the shores, and resounded through the caverns 
of the snow-capped Orizava, which shone like the white 
robes of the angel of peace, far above the fierce conflict. 

The frigates and bomb vessels remained stationary dur- 
ing the contest ; the corvette continued under sail, passing 



272 EXPLOSION OF THE MAGAZINE. 

at one time to the left of the castle, near the bastion of 
Santiago. The assailants kept up an incessant discharge, 
their cannon vomiting forth twenty tons of metal an hour. 
The ammunition of the besieged had been imperfectly pre- 
pared, and although many of their shots were w^ell delivered, 
they did not penetrate the sides of the ships when they 
struck them. Weak as their powder w'as, it was destined 
to spread more havoc among the defenders of San Juan 
than even the shells of their adversary. The action had 
lasted nearly six hours, the Mexicans answering the fire of 
the foe at intervals, working their guns with characteristic 
indolence, when suddenly an awful crash w^as heard which 
drowned the roar of the ordnance, and shook the earth to 
its centre : a magazine had exploded, and the tower of the 
Cavalier was blown up, scattering death and destruction in 
its fall. The shrieks and groans of the w'ounded and dying, 
as they rolled their mutilated bodies in the wet ditches, and 
among the smoking ruins, filled their comrades with horror. 
By this accident the garrison was soon placed hors de com- 
bat, and the firing ceased. The French threw, during the 
day, 302 bomb-shells, 177 paixhan shot, and 7771 solid 
shot. The Mexicans worked but nineteen guns, and threw 
not more than thirteen tons of shot. 

The enemy attacked the city, and with such success 
that if they had been strong enough, they could have held the 
place. Several engagements took place between them and 
the forces under Santa Anna ; in one of these that general, 
while driving the former to their boats, received a dangerous 
wound, which cost him his leg. The difficulties with 
France were shortly afterwards arranged, and the hostile 
fleet left the shores of Mexico. The gallant conduct of 
Santa Anna at Vera Cruz won him golden opinions from 
his countrymen, and placed him once more high in their 
confidence. Yielding up his command, he retired from the 
theatre of his glorious achievements, and concealed his mu- 
tilated body amid the shades of Manga de Clavo, where he 



REPUBLIC OF RIO GRANDE. 273 

remained, watching the course of events, certain of being 
soon called to the power now wielded so unwisely by his 
rival. 

In 1839 General Canales excited a revolt in the north- 
eastern departments against the central government, and with 
the aid of Texas endeavoured to establish an independent Fe- 
deral Republic to be composed of the provinces of Coahuiky 
Tamaulipas, and Durango. The revolutionists declared their 
independence, and Canales was appointed General-in-chief 
of the army, and President of the confederacy. A secret 
treaty was signed by the Texan authorities and the rebel 
leader, who was encamped at Laredo, on the east side of the 
Rio Grande, by which the parties bound themselves as 
follows : 

" The President of the Eepublic of the Rio Grande pledges him- 
self to declare and establish the Federal constitution of 1824, as 
soon as he shall have established his head-quarters within the terri- 
tory claimed by the said Republic. 

That the Republic of the Rio Grande, shall immediately after 
said declaration of independence, recognize the independence of 
Texas. 

The Republic of Texas pledges herself to aid the Federalists of 
the Rio Grande in their struggle for independence, as soon as her 
own independence is recognized by the Republic of the Rio 
Grande." ' 

In compliance with this convention, a volunteer force was 
levied at Bexar, and marched to join the federal army. It 
was commanded by Colonel Jordan, an officer of courage 
and ability. In no instance, however, have the people of 
Mexico united harmoniously with the adventurous spirits of 
the north, whose daring enterprise has led them within their 
territory. The feeble, yet fierce and jealous descendant of 
the Aztec, feels rebuked, in the presence of the bold, ener- 
getic, and intelligent Anglo-American, and he hates those 
whose superiority he is compelled to acknowledge. The 
troops under Canales entered Mexico, and for a brief period 
18 



274 TRACHERY OF CANALES. 

were allowed to advance unmolested into the interior ; their 
reception, however, was neither enthusiastic nor brilliant; 
the inhabitants did not oppose them, nor did they welcome 
them as the champions of their much coveted liberty. The 
occupation of Coahuila, by a revolutionary force of Texans 
and Federalists, soon excited the attention of the central go- 
vernment, and in the spring of 1840, General Mariano Arista 
was sent against them with a strong division of regular 
troops. As the enemy advanced, the Texans discovered 
that they must depend upon their own valor to extricate 
themselves from the danger which menaced them, the jealousy 
of their Mexican allies, exhibited in a thousand ways, pre- 
venting that unity of sentiment and mutual confidence essen- 
tial for the safety of both. 

In the month of April, the hostile armies came in col- 
lision; the combined forces were defeated, and Canales was 
compelled to retreat. That general, who exceeded any of 
his countrymen in perfidy, basely deserted his party at this 
crisis, and left the Texans under Jordan to make their way 
through a hostile territory back to San Antonio de Bexar. — 
By the defection of Canales, the new born republic was 
stifled at its birth. 

In the meantime the administration of Bustamente was 
producing its anticipated results ; it was becoming more 
unpopular every day, and the hoarse clamor of an approach- 
ing revolution was again heard echoing among the mountains 
of Mexico. Pronunciamentos, insurrections, and popular 
tumults occurred in Yucatan, the departments upon the 
Pacific, at Santa Fe, and in the capital, indicating the pre- 
vailing discontent. Santa Anna carefully avoided showing 
himself openly in these movements, but remained in strict 
seclusion, biding the time, which he felt was not far off, 
when he should again have the satisfaction of driving his 
rival into reputeless banishment. 



CHAPTER IV. 

Yucatan: its Climate, Soil, and Topography — Its Population — The 
Revolt of Santiago Iman — Attack upon Espeta — Battle of San 
Fernando — Proclamation of the Rebel Chief against the Clergy — 
Col. Roquena's Attack upon Tizimin — General Rivas — Strength of 
the Rebel Party — Advance upon the city of Valladolid de Yuca- 
tan — Iman proclaims the Constitution of 1824 — Siege of Cam- 
peachy — Tyranny of Bustamente — Revolution of 1841 — Fall of 
Bustamente. 

The Peninsula of Yucatan, situated at the southern 
extremity of Mexico, is one of the most important states 
of that confederacy. Its importance, however, is dependent 
upon its position, rather than upon its population, opu- 
lence, or the fertility of its soil. Presenting a flat, level, 
unbroken surface, its general aspect is barren, arid, and 
desolate, w^ith here and there a cultivated district, w^here 
all the productions of the tropics flourish vrith singular luxu- 
riancy. Without a single river, or a stream of any mag- 
nitude, to vary the monotonous appearance of the plains, 
the country abounds in subterranean vi^ells and rivulets, 
called sonatos, w^hich supply the inhabitants veith v^^ater 
and nourish the parched fields during the dry season. 
The principal cities of Yucatan, are Merida, Valladolid, 
and Campeachy : the former is the capital, the latter is 
the great commercial entrepot of the province. The in- 
habitants of Yucatan are, most of them, of the Indian 
race, and are kept in a state of bondage by their masters, 
the descendants of their Spanish conquerors, w^ho, in con- 
junction with the clergy, exercise unbounded sway over 

(275) 



276 REVOLT OF IMAN. 

these ignorant and subdued serfs. These Indians are of 
the Maya tribe, and differ in many respects from the 
Aztecs and Otomites of the interior of Mexico. They are 
not so intelligent or energetic, though far more virtuous 
and humane than their brethren of the north. There are 
fewer crimes committed in the peninsula than in any other 
part of the Republic ; and it was not until within a few 
years since, that this obscure region experienced the evils 
of a political convulsion. 

The interference of Bustamente in the commercial and 
manufacturing interests of Mexico, had excited a strong 
feeling of opposition against him in Yucatan, as well as 
in several other departments of the confederacy, and when 
the tocsin of revolt was sounded, it found an echo in the 
hearts of the people of this province. On the 29th of 
May, 1839, the tri-color was unfurled at the village of 
Tizimin, in the interior of the peninsula, by Santiago 
Iman, an officer in the militia of the state, who began the 
revolution by proclaiming the constitution of 1824. Six 
leagues distant from his position is the town of Espeta, 
containing about three thousand inhabitants, which was 
garrisoned by a party of government troops, under the 
command of an officer who had conspired with Iman to 
revolutionize the department. The latter sent a messen- 
ger to his accomplice to inform him of his approach. The 
commandant of Espeta had in the meantime changed his 
mind, and resolved to remain true to his allegiance. March- 
ing at night against this point, in the expectation that it 
would be surrendered according to a previous understand- 
ing, the rebel leader was astounded when he heard the 
drums of the garrison beat to arms, and preparations 
made for a vigorous defence by his false confederate. 
Determined, if possible, to carry the town, Iman opened 
a fire upon it, and for several hours the hostile forces 
fought in the dark, with energy and resolution. Volley 
followed volley in rapid succession ; but owing to the 



IlETREAT OF IMAN. 277 

obscurity of the night, and the cover under which both 
parties had placed themselves, neither of them sustained 
much injury. At daybreak, Iman drev^^ off his men, and 
retreated to Tizimin where he remained for a short time, 
organizing and disciplining his raw soldiery. Hearing 
that the government was about to send a force against 
him, the rebel leader retired to the village of San Fernan- 
do, seven leagues distant ; causing the trees bordering the 
road to be cut down, he obstructed it for several miles. 
He also fortified the approaches to his position, by build- 
ing stone walls, behind which his men could fire upon an 
advancing enemy. Having made these prudent arrange- 
ments, he quietly awaited the coming of his adversaries, 
who had threatened him with annihilation, unless he sub- 
mitted, and threw down his arms. 

The procrastinating policy, which is so universal 
throughout Mexico, is also found in Yucatan ; and it 
was not until the government had exhausted its exube- 
rant vocabulary of official denunciation that a hostile gun 
was fired against Santiago Iman, and his rabble rout of 
forlorn and desperate followers. In the month of August, 
the commandant of Espeta marched against San Fer- 
nando at the head of a division of four hundred regular 
troops ; moving with difficulty over the obstructions which 
the rebels had placed in his way, he finally arrived before 
the town. An action ensued, in which neither party dis- 
played much chivalry, or a knowledge of the art of war. 
After exchanging several volleys w^ith the enemy, Iman 
soon felt his position to be uncomfortable ; and doubting 
his ability to hold it in the face of the rattling fire poured 
into his ranks every moment, he determined to retreat. 
This movement he effected in safety, and taldng the route 
to his old quarters at Tizimin, he left San Fernando in 
possession of the regulars. The commandant of Espeta 
returned to his cantonments, boasting that he had cer- 
tainly quelled the revolt, and dispersed the rebel force. 



•25*8 ROQUENA DEFEATS THE INSURGENTS. 

The leader of the revolutionary party, who was not 
destitute of ability, soon undeceived the enemy as to his 
fall by issuing a proclamation addressed to the people of 
Yucatan, guaranteeing to abolish the taxes levied upon 
themselves and their families by the Church. This politic 
measure increased the popularity of the insurgents, and 
brought a great number of recruits to the rebel camp ; 
those who did not openly join the insurrection ^villingly 
furnished those engaged in it with supplies. By this 
means the affairs of the malcontents were placed in a 
flourishing condition ; the clergy, aware of the danger 
their privileges were exposed to by the success of the 
people, united their powerful influence with that of the 
government, and endeavored to crush the daring revolu- 
tionist who had the audacity to attack the prerogative 
they had ever enjoyed, of fleecing the poor Indian of his 
last medio. The opposition of the priesthood checked the 
growth of the revolution for a time, and compelled many 
of its ardent supporters to retire from the contest, con- 
scious of the inutility of struggling against a power 
upheld by the associations and prejudices of three cen 
turies. 

On the 12th of December, Colonel Roquena attacked 
the insurgents with six hundred men at Tizimin. Form- 
ing his followers under cover of a stone wall at the 
entrance of the town, General Iman made a gallant 
defence, keeping up a steady fire from behind the barri- 
cade. Roquena, who was a brave, but not a skillful 
oflicer, suffered his men to stand in front of the wall 
until a score or two had been killed, without making an 
effort to dislodge the rebels. After fighting in this -way 
for several hours, Roquena charged at the head of his 
division, and carried the place at point of the bayonet, 
a manoeuvre he could have easily effected in the beginning 
of the fray. The goA'ernment troops sustained, in this 
action, a loss of fifty killed, and a large number wounded. 



IMAN ATTACKS VALLADOLID. 279 

The rebel loss was very slight. Colonel Roquena, be- 
lieving that as he had driven Santiago Iman from his 
sti'onghold, that the hardy partisan would retire from the 
contest, retm-ned to Campeachy with his division. The 
Commandant-General Rivas, expressing great contempt 
for the revolutionists, scarcely condescended to notice 
their existence, and willingly assented to the report of 
his officer that the enemy had been scattered to the winds 
by the prowess of the victorious troops of the line. San- 
tiago, after his discomfiture, remained perfectly quiet, 
apparently satisfied of his inability to cope with the dis- 
ciplined forces of the government ; this personage was, 
however, preparing for a desperate enterprise, which 
would either bring the struggle to a glorious issue, or 
consign him and his compatriots to an ignominous fate. 

In the cities of Valladolid de Yucatan, Merida, Sisal, 
and Campeachy, there were many persons of wealth, 
intelligence, and influence, who were decidedly hostile to 
Bustamente, in favor of the constitution of 1824, and the 
federal system. With these individuals Iman was not 
unacquainted ; and conscious of their support, he resolved 
to beard the lion in his den. The city of Valladolid is 
one of the principal towns in the republic, and at this 
period was garrisoned by a battalion of regulars, under a 
brave and efficient commander. Lieutenant Colonel Arans, 
who was devoted to the cause of the government he 
served, which was more than could be said of many who 
held commissions under the seal of the executive of 
Mexico at that period, before, and since. 

On the 11th day of February, 1840, Santiago Iman 
appeared before Valladolid, and, making an attack upon 
the harrio (or suburb) of Sisal ; he gained possession of it, 
before the garrison could muster for its defence. Colonel 
Arans marched with all speed to the scene of action, at 
the head of three hundred men ; and in the conflict which 
followed, this meritorious officer was killed, while leading 



280 COMPROMISE OFFERED. 

his troops to the charge. Disheartened by the loss of 
their leader, the garrison were beaten by the rebels, and 
capitulated before sunset. Valladolid was thus taken by 
a handful of daring desperadoes, whose ranks were com- 
posed of Indians, half-breeds, and deserters from the re- 
gular army. Their chief was, however, a man equal to 
the task of turning their rude energies to the best account, 
and his career is not the only one wherein we can discern 
the influence of a predominating spirit over those who are 
exposed to its influence. That night, a convention was 
held at the town-hall, and the constitution of 1824 was 
proclaimed by the victorious federalists, and met with a 
hearty response from the citizens; the adjacent towns and 
villages soon followed the example of Valladolid. The 
partisans in Merida, elated by the success of their party, 
pronounced in favor of the constitution, and in despite of 
the opposition of the military and the clergy, carried their 
point. The city of Campeachy alone remained fii'm to its 
allegiance to the central government. 

The revolution had progressed so far, when the friends 
of Bustamente endeavored to stay its march by offering a 
compromise, proposing that Rivas and other obnoxious 
functionaries should withdraw, and a more popular set of 
officers be appointed in their places. To this, however, 
neither Iman nor his friends would consent, announcing 
their unalterable determination to establish the constitu- 
tion and the laws. Campeachy was defended by a 
thousand men, under the command of General Rivas, who 
was resolved to hold it for the government, as long as he 
had force enough to man its walls. 

The Executive of Mexico, owing to the difficulties which 
prevailed throughout the republic, was unable to send a 
single regiment to his relief, and Rivas was thus left to his 
own resources ; which he certainly made the best use of, con- 
sidering his peculiar position, — shut up in a sea-port town, 
with a whole province in arms against him. The federal 



LEGISLATION ON RELIGION. 281 

army laid siege to Campeachy, and opened a battery upon 
its defences, the fire of which was answered by the be- 
sieged with spirit. For some days, the hostile guns thun- 
dered defiance ; but the injury sustained by either party 
was not sufficient to make them yield to their rival. 
At length, the supplies and ammunition of the centralists 
began to fail, and much against his will, Rivas was com- 
pelled to surrender the town (in June 1840) into the hands 
of the triumphant federalists. By the capitulation of 
Campeachy, the power of Bustamente was annihilated in 
Yucatan, and the revolution brought to a successful ter- 
mination. 

The din of war had now ceased in the peninsula, but 
another struggle commenced, which, if bloodless, was not 
less fierce and determined. There were three political 
factions in the country, each of which was striving for 
the supremacy. One of these, which was called the 
Rochelanos party, \\^as opposed to both the central and 
federal systems; another portion of the people were in 
favor of an immediate and total separation from the 
Mexican confederacy ; the other faction referred to was the 
federalists, who were the most numerous, intelligent, and 
disinterested of those who took an active part in the affairs 
of the department. The clergy threw their powerful in- 
fluence in opposition to the latter, and fought manfully 
against the innovations which threatened to deprive them 
of their time-honored and exclusive privileges. After 
much debate, a constitution was framed upon the basis 
of that of 1824, from which it differed in this, that all re- 
ligions were to be tolerated, while that of the Roman 
Catholic was to be protected, as formerly. Females were 
also exempted from the payment of contributions to the 
clergy, — a decree causing no inconsiderable diminution of 
the revenue of these holy fathers, as there are more females 
in all tropical regions than males. On the 31st of March, 
1841, the new constitution was promulgated, and acknow- 



Wl2 INSURRECTION OF PAREDES. 

ledged as the fundamental law of the free and sovereign 
state of Yucatan. 

The difficulties in the southern departments, hastened 
the ruin of Bustamente, whose administration was already 
tottering to its fall. Among those arrayed against the 
government, were generals Paredes, Canalizo, Tornel, (af- 
terwards minister of war and marine,) Almonte, and Santa 
Anna. In order to maintain his position, the president 
was compelled to keep an army in the field, the expenses 
of which amounted during the year 1840, to more than 
eight millions of dollars. The national debt was increasing 
with a rapidity which threatened to swell it far beyond the 
ability of the nation to liquidate it, and notwithstanding 
the onerous duties — which in many instances exceeded the 
value of the articles imported — levied upon all merchan- 
dise brought into the country, the exchequer was as empty 
as the enemies of the party in power could desire. A 
large portion of the circulating medium in Mexico consists 
of copper coin, which within a few months had been depre- 
ciated sixty per cent, from its original value. As the great 
mass of the people were the holders of this derogate coin, 
its depreciation tended in no slight degree to increase the 
prevailing discontent. The affairs of the republic were in 
this critical condition, when Paredes jyronoitnced against the 
supreme authority, in the month of August, 1841, in the 
department of Guadalaxara, which soon declared in favor 
of the revolutionary movement. The insurrection being 
sustained by some of the ablest men in the country, its 
progress soon became irresistible, and bore down all before 
it. The government, destitute of resom*ces to meet the 
exigency, was forced to remain inactive, while the insur- 
gents- were concentrating their troops upon the capital. 
Nowise intimidated by the approach of his foes, Busta- 
mente resolved to hold on to the power he had acquired to 
the last, and rejected the overtures of the former with 
haughty disdain. When it became known that Santa 



SANTA ANNA APPOINTED PRESIDENT. 283 

Anna had espoused the cause of the malcontents, the re- 
collection of his recent services at Vera Cruz, inspired the 
people with an enthusiastic regard for liim Avhich drew 
thousands to his party and rendered their success certain. 
Enraged at the refusal of Bustamente to yield to their de- 
mands, the revolutionary chiefs brought up their divisions, 
and opened their batteries upon the city of the Montezu- 
mas ; whose walls again echoed with the fierce strife of 
contending factions. Driven to extremity, the executive 
still continued the struggle, opposing the entrance of 
his enemies into the capital with the few regiments 
which remained faithful to him. The number and perse- 
verance of his adversaries, however, enabled them to 
overcome the obstacles he had vainly hoped would check 
their progress, the city was taken, and succumbing to his 
destiny, Bustamente retired from the contest, his own ty- 
ranny, and the restless ambition of his rivals had provoked. 
The government was immediately reorganized upon the 
Plan of Tacubaya, v^hich abolished the former constitu- 
tions, and invested the chief magistrate with plenary 
powers to restore the tranquillity and prosperity of the 
commonwealth. General Santa Anna was soon after 
appointed to the supreme authority, and entered upon the 
duties of his oflice, amid the rejoicings of his numerous 
partisans, who hailed his installation as the harbinger of 
peace, order, and national greatness. And had it been in 
the power of any man within the confines of the republic 
to have achieved these desirable ends, the nation could not 
have made a better selection than this distinguished chief, 
whose abilities were unquestionably superior to those who 
surrounded him eager to share in the spoils of ofiice. 

The executive dignity at this period was no sinecure, 
the effects of the policy piu'sued by his predecessor gave 
ample scope for the exercise of the talents of the provi- 
sional president, who found himself in a position of great 
difficulty the moment he accepted the coveted honors of 



284 ENERGY OF SANTA ANNA. 

his state. There was scarcely a dollar in the public 
treasury to meet the daily expenses of the government, 
much less to pay the interest accruing upon the national 
debt, or to maintain the army upon whose bayonets he 
depended for the continuance of his power. Dissensions 
also prevailed in different parts of the country; Yucatan 
had withdrawn from the confederacy, and aided and en- 
couraged by the Texans refused to return to her allegiance 
unless the Mexican government would comply with her 
demands. Santa Anna met these financial and political 
embarrassments with energy and sagacity, and succeeded 
in stemming the tide which had threatened to overwhelm 
his administration in the beginning. By the exercise of a 
power as potent as that of Prospero, he stilled the politi- 
cal tempest, replenished the empty coffers of the state, 
maintained a powerful army, quelled the seditious at- 
tempts of his enemies, and warded off the angry demands 
of foreign envoys, with an address peculiarly his own. 
The wealthy and intelligent classes were willing to con- 
tribute a portion of their immense revenues to sustain 
their favorite at the outset of his career, forgetful of the 
fact that governments supported by contributions or direct 
taxation grow exacting as they become consolidated, until 
their insatiate demands eat up the substance of the 
people, and the dynasty itself expires, like a devouring 
fire that has destroyed all things within its reach. The 
system of forced loans adopted by Santa Anna relieved 
his necessities for a time, but ultimately caused a revolu- 
tion, which hurled him from his position, and placed the 
country in the hands of those whose incompetency, ve 
nality, or ambition, has brought upon the Mexican nation 
the combined calamities of intestine and foreign war, 
domestic treason, and external spoliation, poverty, an- 
archy, and ruin; which has caused the blood of her 
bravest sons to flow like water, which has dismembered 
her territory, and prostrated her arrogant crest in the dust. 



CHAPTER V. 

Invasion of New Mexico — Capture, and fate of the Invaders — Cru- 
elty of Salazar — Dissolution of Congress by Santa Anna — Con- 
vocation of a Junta — Condition of Yucatan — Commodore Moore — 
Expedition against Yucatan under General Morales — The Vomito — 
Its Effects — Return of the Mexican Army — Foray into Texas — 
Capture of Bexar — General Canales — Gen. Woll's Expedition — 
The Texans cross the Rio Grande — Battle of Mier — CaptviTe of 
the Texans — The new Constitution — Order for the expulsion of 
Americans from the north-western Departments — Conduct of the 
American Envoy — Remonstrances of Mexico against the Annexa- 
tion of Texas — Armistice between Mexico and Texas — Sam Hous- 
ton — The British Charge d' Affairs — Negotiations for Peace — San- 
ta Anna and los Texanos — General Almonte's Protest — Opening of 
the Chamber of Deputies — Installation of Santa Anna. 

A SHORT time after the accession of Santa Anna in 
1841, a party of Texans who had invaded the territory of 
Santa Fe, in New Mexico, were taken prisoners, and sent 
under an escort to the capital. The unfortunate indi- 
viduals composing the expedition, suffered horribly during 
their passage through the untrodden wilderness which 
they traversed. Upon their arrival upon the Rio Galinas, 
in the vicinity of Santa Fe, they were inveigled into a 
capitulation to Don Manuel Armijo, the governor of the 
province, who wantonly violated the terms he had pro- 
mised to keep with them. The prisoners who surrendered 
in September, 1841, were taken to the town of San 
Mguel, stripped of their valuables, and thrown into 
prison ; after several of their number had been slaugh- 

(285) 



286 CRUELTY OF SALAZAR. 

tered in cold blood, the rest were marched toward the 
city of Mexico. In their passage through the territory 
under the jurisdiction of Armijo, a portion of the captives 
were consigned to the care of Captain Salazar, whose 
cruelty toward them almost exceeds belief: he put several 
of them to death for no other reason than that they were 
unable to keep up with their comrades ; he then cut off 
their ears, and stringing the bloody trophies upon a piece 
of buckskin, he carried them to the frontiers of the adjoin- 
ing department of Chihuahua, and presented them as a 
token that the men had not escaped.* The governor of 
the latter state, Don Garcia Conde, treated the prisoners 
with humanity, and provided liberally for their comfort. 
Most of the party being forced to travel on foot, they 
endured many privations, and much suffering, in the long 
journey of more than two thousand miles from Santa Fe 
to the capital. On the route the Texans were attacked 
with the small-pox, of which loathsome malady a number 
of them perished. Arriving at the city of Mexico, the 
members of the expedition were confined in the convent 
of Santiago, and loaded with chains, were forced to work 
on the public highways. In this -way did the Mexicans 
treat their prisoners of war, M^ho had not committed an 
act of depredation upon their territory, nor even fired a 
gun in self defence, but had surrendered at the first sum- 
mons. Compelled to work like galley slaves, incarcerated 
in the gloomy dungeons of Perotef and Santiago, coA-ered 
with vermin and miseria, the remains of the party lingered 
out a wretched existence until the month of June, 1842, 
when they were liberated by Santa Anna. 

The administration of the president, ad interim, had so 
far given satisfaction to the people, and his popularity 



* See Kendall's Santa Fe Expedition. 

\ Those confined in the castle of Perote suffered more than those 
who remained at the capital. 



CONVOCATION OF A NEW JUNTA. 287 

was not a little increased by the capture of the Texans. 
In June, 1842, a congress assembled at the government 
palace, for the purpose of reorganizing the constitution 
and the laws, in accordance with the plan of Tacubaya. 
As usual, dissensions soon broke out in the deliberative 
body; the friends of Santa Anna asked too much for him, 
while his political enemies wished to curtail the preroga- 
tives he already possessed. The majority of the deputies 
were opposed to placing unlimited power in the hands of 
the executive, knowing from experience, that however 
wisely it might be used at first, in the end it would be 
abused, to the injury of the nation. The occurrences of 
the following year proved this fear to be founded upon 
truth. 

The history of all ages teaches us, that political power 
is misapplied the moment it becomes concentrated, and 
that the patriot degenerates into the tyrant, when he is 
governed by no law save his own will. Happy are the 
people who are governed the least ! Perceiving the im- 
possibility of obtaining the consent of the legislative body 
to his plans of selfish aggrandizement, Santa Anna posted 
a corps of soldiers, under the command of a trusty officer, 
at the doors of the palace, with orders to oppose the 
entrance of the deputies. In this summary manner, the 
deliberations of Congress were closed, and the representa- 
tives forbidden to exercise their lawful functions. Resist- 
ance would have been utterly useless, for the ten thousand 
bayonets of the despot gleamed upon all sides, ready to 
charge at his behest. 

A junta was subsequently convoked by the head of the 
government, who took care that none but those who fa- 
vored his own schemes should have a potential voice 
therein ; — an admirable method of ensuring the harmony 
of its meetings, if not the wisdom of its decrees. The 
department of Yucatan still continued in a state of revolt, 
and steadily refused to re-enter the Mexican Union, unless 



288 INVASION OF YUCATAN. 

the rights she claimed should be guaranteed to her under 
the seal of the republic. The pride of neither party would 
admit the adoption of a compromise, and war was openly- 
declared between them. The Texans had entered into a 
convention with the authorities of the peninsula, and Com- 
modore Moore, with the fleet of the former, swept the Gulf 
from Cape Catoche to the mouth of the Mississippi, in 
search of the Mexican flag. In his encounters with their 
vessels, he was invariably the victor. 

In the summer of 1842, an army was collected at Vera 
Cruz, for the invasion of Yucatan; Santa Anna being de- 
termined to chastise the rebels into obedience. The 
expeditionary troops consisted of four thousand men, and 
were placed under the command of General Juan Morales, 
an able and efficient officer. The rainy season had already 
begun, before the divisions were mustered at the rendez- 
vous, and several cases of the vomito warned them that the 
dreaded scourge of the south was at hand. As the climate 
of the peninsula was considered far more salubrious than 
that of Vera Cruz, Morales did not hesitate to embark for 
his destination — a movement as fatal as it was ill-advised. 
Had he delayed his enterprise until wdnter, the issue of it 
would have been less melancholy. 

The invading army landed upon the coast of Yucatan 
in the month of August, when, owing to some peculiar 
cause, the fever broke out in the camp, and raged Avith 
unusual violence. Whole companies perished before its 
pestilential breath in a day. Morales endeavored to con- 
ceal the excessive mortality from his army; but it was 
impossible, at last, even to bury the dead with the accus- 
tomed rites of the church, and hundreds "svere thrown into 
shallow trenches, scarcely deep enough to hide their putrid 
remains. Literally blasted Avith sickness and devoured 
by death, regiment after regiment melted away, until but a 
few miserable battalions remained of this once formidable 
force; which had anticipated a contest far different from 



INCURSIONS INTO TEXAS. 289 

that which they had fought with the king of terrors, who 
had met them in his most ghastly form. 

Morales was glad to be allowed to return to Vera Cruz, 
after the lapse of a few weeks, with the remnant of his 
troops, a mere fraction of whom had lived to relate the 
horrors of this disastrous expedition. The expenses of 
this enterprise were too great to admit of a repetition of 
a similar attempt, and Yucatan was left to pursue her own 
course unmolested; she subsequently dictated her own 
terms, and re-entered the confederacy, and at present ac- 
knowledges a nominal allegiance to the Mexican republic. 
Six years had now elapsed since the battle of San Jacinto,, 
and during that period not a hostile Mexican had been 
seen within the confines of Texas, nor a hostile gun had 
awakened the echoes of her forests. 

In the meantime, the new republic had been advanc- 
ing rapidly towards a condition of prosperity, which she 
could alone have achieved under the fostering care of a 
free and enlightened government. In the spring of 1842,. 
General Bascus, who commanded the Mexican forces at the 
Presidio Rio Grande, made a sudden attack upon Texas, 
and surprising the town of San Antonio de Bexar, pillaged^ 
its inhabitants, and retreated with his booty, with a celeri- 
ty which defied pursuit. This predatory expedition was 
followed in July by another, under General Canales, con- 
sisting of a strong body of cavalry and infantry. Canales 
was met on the Nueces by a small party of Texans, who 
after a short engagement forced him to retreat with consi- 
derable loss. In September, 1842, General Adrian Woll 
crossed the Rio Grande at the head of more than a thou- 
sand men, and Bexar again fell into the hands of the spoil- 
er. The unprotected condition of the western frontier in- 
vited these forays ; w^hich were among the least of the 
injuries sustained by the Texans, from the hands of their 
president Sam. Houston, whose policy in peace and war, 
though not destitute of a certain kind of prudence, stamps 
19 



290 EXPEDITION OF THE TEXANS. 

him as one unfitted to govern a commonwealth of the small- 
tesf dimensions. A patriot and a brave soldier, Houston 
lias ever been swayed by the appearance, rather than the 
actual condition of things; his political career has therefore 
been marked with great inconsistencies ; Texas can never 
forget him, should she exist a thousand years. The town 
of Bexar, at the time of Woll's invasion, was filled with 
the inhabitants of the adjacent country, who had been 
drawn thither to attend the District Court then in session. 
The Mexican leader encamped at Bexar, for nearly a week, 
refreshing his men and collecting the spoil. During this 
period, a party of Texans under Colonel Caldwell marched 
to the relief of the town : the number of the enemy was, 
however, too great to admit of a contest with the hope 
of success. A company of Texans, commanded by Cap- 
tain Dawson, attempted to force their way into Caldwell's 
camp, but were surrounded by the enemy, and a combat 
a la outrance ensvied. The former fought with their usual 
courage ; but, overwhelmed by numbers, they were cut 
down by scores, until but a few remained alive, twelve of 
whom were badly wounded. The Mexican loss was very 
severe, and hastened the return of Woll, who retreated 
into Mexico, carrying with him fifty-two prisoners and 
much booty. The Texan Executive determined to retali- 
ate, and a force of eight hundred cavalry was dispatched 
to the Rio Grande, under General Somerville, who returned 
without having effected a single object of the expedition, 
on the 19th of December. Three hundred of the party 
refused to retrace their steps without having performed 
some deed worthy of their reputation as " cavaliers and 
strong men." 

Actuated by a spirit of adventure, these men had no 
other object in view than to gratify a vague feeling of 
reckless courage, which courted dangerous enterprises for 
their own sake, rather than for the hope of gain or even 
the giorjr of having achieved them. This feeling is pecu- 



BATTLE OF MIER. 291 

liar to the people of the west and south-west, who in this 
respect differ from all others, and can scarcely be under- 
stood by those who have not felt its promptings ; it is 
different from that which carried Cortes to Anahuac, and 
Pizarro to the land of the Incas ; it is less selfish, more 
chivalric, and elevated. 

Electing Colonel W. S. Fisher as their leader, the ad- 
venturers descended the river to the Alcantro, a small 
stream which empties into it; the town of Mier is situated 
about a league above its confluence with the Rio Grande. 
Fisher entered this place, and demanded a supply of pro- 
visions and horses, which being readily promised by the 
alcalde, he withdrew from the town, and encamped in the 
vicinity. In the meantime. General Ampudia marched to 
the relief of Mier. The Texans, who were in a suffering 
condition, madly resolved to force their way into the place 
which they had evacuated. On the evening of the 25th of 
December, 1842, Fisher led his men to the assault, and 
penetrating into the heart of the town, in the face of a 
heavy foe of artillery and musketry from Ampudia's divi- 
sion, they effected a lodgment near the public square. 

At daybreak on the following morning, the combat was 
renewed by the enemy opening a fire from two six-pound- 
ers upon the position occupied by the daring adventurers, 
who answered it with a rapid and fatal discharge from their 
rifles. For several hours the battle raged furiously, the Tex- 
ans defended by the stone walls of the houses, delivered their 
fire with unerring certainty, and at every volley sent a hun- 
dred of the foe to eternity. Several desperate sallies were 
made, and blood flowed through the streets and from every 
house upon which the Mexicans had posted themselves. 
The force under Ampudia was three thousand and more in 
number, the adventurers were but two hundred and sixty-five 
rank and file ; a portion of their men having been left at 
the camp with their horses and baggage. Notwithstand- 
ing this great disparity in strength, the issue of the contest 



^93 NEW POLITICAL ORGANIZATION. 

would have been doubtful, had not the ammunition of the 
Texans become exhausted. As it was, they acceded un- 
willingly to the terms offered by Ampudia, who violated 
them as a matter of course as soon as he had secured his 
prisoners ; who were soon after marched off under an es- 
cort to the capital; to suffer the same indignities, priva- 
tions, and sufferings, imposed upon all who have trusted 
to the Jides Mexicana, which is more false than that of the 
Carthagenians of old. On their route to Mexico the party 
rose upon their guard, and succeeded in making their 
escape, but being recaptured, seventeen of their number 
were put to death in a cruel and most barbarous manner. 

On the 16th of June, 1843, the Junta convoked by Santa 
Anna brought their deliberations to a close, and proclaimed 
the result of their labors to the nation. The basis of the 
political organization of the republic was declared to be 
in substance as follows : 

That the liberty of the press and of the people shall be 
inviolate. No taxes could be imposed except by the legis- 
lative authority, which was invested in a house of deputies 
and a senate. The confederacy was to be divided into 
sections, each to contain five hundi*ed inhabitants, who 
were to nominate one elector. The latter were to select 
from their number one from every twenty, who in their 
turn appointed the members of the national Congress, and 
the state assembly; which was to be composed of not more 
than eleven and not less than seven persons, whose duties 
were similar to those of a departmental legislature. The 
governors of the states were to be appointed by the Presi- 
dent. The executive power was to be invested in a native 
born Mexican who was not an ecclesiastic; -whose term 
of office was to continue five years, and who was to be 
elected by the state assemblies, or by the houses of Con- 
gress in certain contingencies. The President was allowed 
to exercise a veto upon the acts of the legislative body, 
which was, however, limited within due bounds. He 



OUTLINE OF NEW CONSTITUTION. 293 

possessed the power of levying fines of five hundred dol- 
lars upon those who disobeyed his lawful commands ; and 
could convoke extra sessions of Congress, and dictate the 
subjects of their deliberations. He was not permitted to 
assume any military command without the consent of the 
legislature, nor could he leave the country during his ad- 
ministration, nor within one year thereafter without their 
express permission. During his absence from the capital, 
the speaker of the senate was to perform his duties ; if his 
absence continued longer than two weeks, a president ad 
interim was to be appointed by the senators. He could 
be impeached for treason against the state or the constitu- 
tion, but was exempted from all other criminal prosecutions 
during his term of office and for one year afterwards. The 
Senate was composed of sixty-three members, each pos- 
sessed of an annual income of two thousand dollars, two- 
thirds of whom were to be elected by the departments, the 
other third by the deputies, the president, and the supreme 
court. The higher orders of the clergy were disqualified 
from being deputies, but could be appointed to the senate, 
one third of which was to be renewed every three years. 
All laws were to originate in the lower house; and all 
treaties required the sanction of both branches of the le- 
gislature to become valid. Congress was forbidden to alter 
the revenue laws intended for protection, nor could they 
annul the obligations of contracts thereafter to be entered 
into. The other powers belonging to this body were simi- 
lar to those set forth in the constitution of 1824. The 
council of government was to be composed of seventeen 
persons appointed by the president, who were to be se- 
lected from those who had served the republic at least ten 
years without intermission in some official capacity. 

The judges held their offices for life, and were respon- 
sible for their decisions. A military tribunal was estab- 
lished, to take cognizance of the affairs of the army; this 
court was to be permanent, and was composed of generals 



294 A TYRANNICAL EDICT. 

and advocates appointed by the head of the government. 
All persons indicted for crime, or who served others in a 
menial capacity, as well as confirmed inebriates, gamblers, 
and vagrants, were excluded from the elective franchise. 
After the year 1850, it ivas declared, iluit no one who could not 
read and write should he allowed the privilege of voting. 
Mexicans of eighteen years of age, if married, were ad- 
mitted to all the rights of citizenship ; if single, not until 
they were twenty-one. 

Such were the principal features of the new constitu- 
tion. In other parts, it resembled that of 1824, except that 
it was more central in its provisions than that instrument; 
the power of the several states being merely nominal 
under this organization, while the supreme authority was 
consolidated in the general government, whose decrees 
were all-powerful. 

On the 14th of July, 1843, General Tornel, the minister 
of v^rar and marine, issued an order to the governors of 
Sonora, Sinaloa, Chihuahua, and the Californias, to the 
following effect: 

" The President, ad interim, by virtue of the powers conferred 
upon him by the law of 22d of February, 1832, convinced of the 
impropriety of allowing the (naturales) natives of the United Slates 
to reside in the department under your command, has resolved that 
they shall be ordered out of it, within such time as it may appear 
most prudent to you ; and that in future, no individual belonging to 
the United States be permitted to enter the said department ; it being 
understood that this order is to apply even to the frontier of the de- 
partment. To which end, I have the honor to make known to you 
this supreme resolution, recommending you to carry it into complete 
effect." 

This tyrannical edict, the result of local prejudice and 
unmanly jealousy, was studiously concealed from the 
knowledge of the American minister, who w^as not in- 
formed of its existence until the following winter. It was 
a stroke of policy purely Mexican, and illustrates the 
duplicity of the national character, which leads them to 



MEXICAN DUPLICITY/ 295 

pursue their aim through dark and tortuous ways. Nothing 
is done in an open, straight-forward manner in that coun- 
try ; the Mexican seeks to hide his simplest actions under 
a veil of mystery. When General Thompson* was made 
acquainted with this decree — which was in violation of 
the express stipulations of the treaties existing between 
the two republics — he immediately demanded an explana- 
tion of the Mexican government. With their usual procras- 
tinating policy, the Mexican officials returned no reply to 
the communication of the American envoy; who, however, 
addressed another note to the authorities, demanding in- 
stant satisfaction, or the deliverance of his passports. 
Bocanegra, the minister of foreign relations, did not deign 
to answer it; and the envoy prepared to depart from the 
country, without a moment's unnecessary delay. In order 
to prevent his departure, the former laid an embargo upon 
the Vera Cruz diligencia, in which the latter had engaged 
his passage. Late that night, the envoy received an 
apology from Bocanegra, who added, that the order referred 
to all strangers who had rendered themselves obnoxious to 
the government, and not alone to natives of the United 
States. This prevaricating statement was received in 
good part by the American envoy, who did not wish to 
increase the imtation already existing between his own 
country and Mexico. The unjust decree was also imme- 
diately revoked. 

During the summer of this year, through the mediation 
of the British charge d'affaires at Mexico, a cessation of 
hostilities obtained between Texas and her former go- 
vernment. On the 15th of June, 1843, Houston issued a 
proclamation announcing that an armistice had been 
agreed upon by the two nations, which was to continue 
during the negotiation then pending for peace, and com- 
manding all officers in the service of Texas to observe the 
same. On the 7th of July, Tornel, the minister of war, 

* General Waddy Thompson, of South Carolina. 



296 ARMISTICE BETWEEN MEXICO AND TEXAS. 

ordered General Woll to withdraw his parties of observa- 
tion and discovery, and to abstain from any hostile demon- 
stration upon the Texan frontier while the armistice 
lasted. He also instructed the commander-in-chief of the 
northern army, to give official notice to the president of 
Texas to appoint commissioners, who in conjunction with 
those chosen by the former, were to establish the armis- 
tice according to the usage and practice of war. The 
latter was invited to send duly accredited agents to the 
capital, with full pow^ers to negotiate a permanent treaty, 
upon the basis of certain propositions which had been 
submitted to the Executive of Mexico, guaranteeing to 
them a safe-conduct, while coming, staying, and returning 
on their mission. Woll was, however, at the same time 
ordered to continue his warlike preparations for a descent 
upon Texas, in case the treaty should not be consumma- 
ted between the countries. There was, at this crisis, a 
strong party in Texas who were opposed to the annexation 
of that State to the American confederacy, (a measiu*e 
then agitated by the people of both republics,) who were 
suspected of favoring the views of England. 

Against this union Mexico strongly protested both to 
the American envoy, and through her own minister resid- 
ing at the capital of the United States.* Declaring that 
the Mexican government would consider an act for the 
incorporation of her former province into the territory 
of the latter, as equivalent to a proclamation of war 
against her, and that she was ready to resist the aggres- 
sion by force of arms, leaving the civilized world to judge 
of the justice of her cause. In her eagerness to prevent 
the detested alliance, Mexico, for the first time, consented 
to accept the offer of mediation, made by the British 
envoy, and condescended to treat with her revolted depart- 
ment. The opportunity was embraced mthout hesitation 

* See Appendix, II, III, IV, V, VI. 



NEGOTIATIONS WITH TEXAS. 297 

by Houston, who had become the willing instrument of 
the Charge, and was ready to obey his dictation in this as 
well as other matters affecting the vital interests of his 
country. The solicitude evinced by England for the set- 
tlement of the difficulties between the belligerent states, 
was attributed to the desire which has lately been exhib- 
ited by the government of that country for the abolition 
of negro slavery, of which cause, to her honor be it said, 
she is the able champion. The best answer to this charge 
will be found in the declaration of her Secretary of State, 
at the close of this work.* 

The principal object which Mexico had in view in 
consenting to treat with Texas, was to prevent the latter 
from being absorbed into the northern confederacy, to suc- 
ceed in this she was willing even to sacrifice her over- 
weening feelings of pride ; sustained and encouraged by 
the diplomatic agents of England and France, who did 
not conceal their animosity to the annexation movement, 
the respective commissioners earnestly endeavored to 
effect a reconciliation. But there were too many antago- 
nizing principles in action, too many prejudices to be con- 
quered by either party, to admit of a hasty pacification, 
however devoutly desired. The negotiation progressed 
slowly, and finally terminated without having settled a 
single point in dispute between the hostile nations. It 
has been said, by high authority, that this complaisance 
towards Texas, was only a device of Santa Anna to 
relieve him from the difficulty in which he had involved 
himself by his threats and promises of reconquering the 
territory beyond the Rio Grande ; f that personage hav- 

* See Appendix, XI. 

In the House of Lords, on the 18th of August, 1843, in reply to an 
interrogatory from Lord Brougham, concerning the abolition of slavery 
in Texas, the Earl of Aberdeen said, that the government would not fail 
to urge the matter by negotiation, and by all other means in its power. 

f Dispatches from the American Legation at Mexico, 2d Febr\iary, 
1844, General Thompson to Mr. Upshur. 



298 ASSEMBLING OF A NEW CONGRESS. 

ing been forced, against his better judgment, to counte- 
nance the preparations which more than once had been 
commenced for that chimerical enterprise ; the Mexican 
chief having no desire to see the grim visages of los Tex- 
anos, unless they were loaded with gyve and chain, and 
broken in spirit, compelled to toil upon the roads of the 
great republic, of which he was now, thanks to their 
mercy, the supreme head ! Certainly he should keep an 
ever-burning light before the shrine of his patron saint, 
the good San Antonio, who has granted him so many 
favors, not the least of which has been that of seeing 
his enemies reduced to so miserable a condition that to 
slay them would have been an act of clemency; death 
being preferable to slavery. 

On the 3d of November, 1843, General Juan Almonte, 
the minister representing the southern confederacy, ad- 
dressed a communication to the government of the United 
States, demanding upon the part of his republic, an ex- 
planation in regard to the proposed annexation of Texas 
to the former, against which he entered his solemn protest; 
reiterating the declaration of Don Jose Maria de Bocane- 
gra, that his nation would deem it an infraction of exist- 
ing treaties, and equivalent to the announcement of 
hostilities.* These remonstrances passed unheeded. 

On the 1st of January, 1844, the Congress elected 
under the new constitution assembled at the national 
palace, amid the rejoicings of the people, who hailed the 
event with all the usual demonstrations of popular satis- 
faction. The chambers were opened by General Canalizo, 
who portrayed the prosperous condition of the country in 
glowing colors, asserting that the mining, agricultural, and 
manufacturing interests of the republic were in the most 
flourishing state ; that the people were in the full enjoy- 
ment of civil liberty, contented and happy, and that the 

* See Appendix, VII, VIII, IX. 



INAUGURATION OF SANTA ANNA. 299 

surest way of keeping them so was to protect their rights 
and foster their industry, by maintaining the tariff then, 
in successful operation, so that foreign nations could not 
compete with them. 

In his reply to this harangue, the president of the 
Senate had the boldness to deny the assertions and pos- 
tulates of Canalizo; exhibiting the affairs of the nation 
in their true light, he proceeded to prove that while the 
national debt had increased to ninety millions, the reve- 
nues had been diminishing, and were inadequate to meet 
the expenditures of the government. Commerce, he con- 
tinued, had been paralyzed by prohibitory tariffs, and the 
mines had passed into the hands of foreign capitalists ; 
agriculture languished, while manufactures had grown 
into monopolies, which, becoming ravenous with that 
which they fed upon, still demanded protection. These 
bold strictures upon the policy of the administration, 
though received in silence, were not lost upon the assem- 
bly; and when the Seiior Ximienes resumed his seat, and 
the house adjourned, the members departed thoughtfully. 
Santa Anna had already fallen considerably in their 
estimation. 

The 2d of January was ushered in amid the thunder 
of cannon, the enlivening strains of martial music, and 
the shouts of the populace, who were eager to witness 
the installation of the president elect ; five thousand of 
the best equipped and disciplined troops in Mexico were 
drawn up in the great square, where Santa Anna was 
inaugurated (by proxy*) as chief magistrate of the re- 
public. A dignity he was not destined to hold very long 
before it was stripped from him by the rude hand of suc- 
cessful rebellion, which in its turn was hurled from its 
seat by ruffian violence, which fell exhausted in the effort 
to quell the storm which had borne it into power ! 

* General Canalizo acting as his representative. 



BOOK VII. 



CHAPTER I. 

Financial difficulties of Mexico — The amount of the National Debt — 
Revenues of the Republic — Expenses of the Government — The 
cost of the Army — Mexican Navy — Santa Anna's personal Popu- 
larity — His Leg — Commencement of Difficulties with the United 
States — History of the Annexation Movement — Mediation of Eu- 
ropean Powers — Mexican aggressions upon the Commerce and 
Citizens of the United States — Treaty of 1831 — Its Violation — 
Forbearance of the American Government — Convention for the ad- 
justment of Claims, 1839 — Indemnity Allowed — Renewal of the 
Annexation Question — Mr. Calhoun — Sam Houston. 

The condition of Mexico at this period was one of 
peculiar difficulty, and was calculated to awaken not only 
the sympathies of her own sons, but of all those who 
entertained friendly feelings toward her. The reckless 
administration of Bustamente and his party had almost 
despoiled her of the means of national existence ; and 
although Santa Anna had, by a vigorous effort, repaired 
some of the breaches misrule had made in the public 
credit, it still trembled beneath the accumulated load of 
foreign and domestic debt the former had heaped upon 
her. It was ascertained upon examination at the begin- 
ning of 1844, that the financial responsibilities of the 

(301) 



302 DIFFICULTIES OF THE GOVERNMENT. 

central government amounted to nearly one hundred 
millions of dollars, not more than one-fourth of which 
was owing to persons residing in the country ; sixty 
millions were due to English creditors, who were to be 
paid an annual interest, drawn from the diminished reve- 
nues, leaving to the state scarcely enough to maintain 
itself. 

These revenues were derived from the duties upon in- 
ternal and external commerce, direct taxation, mines, and 
forced contributions; from duties upon stamped paper, 
playing cards, pulque, and various other articles. The 
tobacco monopoly yielded five hundred thousand dollars 
annu5,lly; lotteries and cockpits were also taxed, and the 
incomes and property of the opulent, as w^ell as the scanty 
proceeds which blessed the toil of the poor Indian, who, 
seated in the great square, patiently awaited the moment 
when he could dispose of his store, brought many aweary 
league from his mountain home. The aggregate revenue 
maybe safely estimated, at this period, at about twenty mil- 
lions ; at present, it is much less. The expenses of the go- 
vernment exceeded this sum ; the hospitals, fortresses, and 
army, costing no inconsiderable portion of it, the latter, in 
time of peace, absorbing from seven to ten millions of the 
public funds. The Mexican navy, consisting of two expen- 
sive steamers and nine brigs and schooners, also helped to 
increase the difficulties arising from the w^ant of money; 
and served no other purpose than to display the folly of 
maintaining a small fleet to guard a coast stretching five 
thousand miles upon the Pacific Ocean, and two thousand 
five hundred upon the Gulf. Tempestuous seas, shallow 
water, the vomito, and violent winds, formed a better pro- 
tection against the approach of a hostile squadron. 

Undismayed by the sad state of affairs existing in the 
republic, Santa Anna gallantly resolved to bear up under 
the evils which beset his administration; and, rel3dng upon 
his destiny, endeavor to submit to that which he could not 



/ 

THE POLICY OF THE UNITED STATES. 303 

overcome. He therefore applied all his energies to the 
fulfillment of the onerous duties of his station, and ruling 
the nation with an absolute will; he certainly maintained 
his position in the midsts of difficulties which would have 
overwhelmed a feebler intellect. The truth is, that this 
singular personage, though his foible is to parade at the 
head of his army, is a much abler statesman than he is a 
warrior — a greater diplomatist than a general ; but, like 
all men of unquestionable talents, he would shine in any 
capacity in which fate had placed him. To do justice to 
his character, we must regard him as something better 
than the mere brigand he has so often appeared. The 
personal popularity of Santa Anna was doubtless of 
great service to him while at the head of affairs, and en- 
abled him to resist the efforts of his enemies, who opposed 
his iron rule. So great was this devotion to his person, 
that the leg he had lost at Vera Cruz had been buried 
with pompous ceremonies in the cemetery of Santa Paula, 
in the environs of the capital, where a magnificent monu- 
ment, surmounted by the national insignia announced to 
the world, the solemn fact, that the sinister extremity of 
General Santa Anna reposed below. A rare example of 
the gratitude of republics ! 

The great question which demanded the attention of 
the government at the beginning of 1844, was that arising 
from the policy pursued by the United States toward the 
country north of the Rio Grande, Notwithstanding the 
remonstrances of the Mexican ministers against the an- 
nexation movement, the former continued to agitate the 
subject, regardless of the threats or protests of the latter ; 
and it required no great prescience to perceive the issue 
of the negotiations then pending between Texas and the 
authorities at Washington. The failure of the commis- 
sioners to adjust the difficulties existing since 1835, had, 
of course, rendered the prospect of a reconciliation still 
more doubtful; and Mexico and her former province 



304 TEXAS PROPOSES ANNEXATION. 

resumed the hostile attitude they occupied previous to the 
armistice, and the war would have been renewed if the 
Mexican exchequer had not been exhausted at this crisis. 
As it was, Santa Anna declared his determination of 
placing himself at the head of his columns, and of march- 
ing into Texas, where he anticipated an easy victory over 
the enemies of the republic. When he uttered these senti- 
ments, the president well knew that he could not support 
an invading army six weeks, even if he could muster such 
a force, which was extremely doubtful ; his veterans still 
remembered San Jacinto, and the long march from the 
Brazos to Matamoras. His declarations on this subject 
were a mere ruse de guerre, to blind the nation as to his 
real intentions, and to cause them to submit quietly to the 
imposts he was about to levy, under the pretext of re- 
subjugating Texas, — a consummation ardently desired by 
every Mexican in the land, but which no man was so well 
convinced of its utter impossiblity as Santa Anna himself. 
On the 4th day of August, 1837, soon after she had 
achieved her independence, Texas had submitted a pro- 
position to the government of the United States, for the 
annexation of her territory to the northern confederacy — 
urging the measure as one calculated to promote the inte- 
rests of both parties, in an immeasurable degree. Presi- 
dent Van Buren, however, declined to accept of these 
terms, for several cogent reasons; asserting, that so long 
as Texas was at war with Mexico, and the United States 
remained at peace with her, the proposition of annexation 
necessarily involved the question of war with that power; 
a contingency to be deprecated, as the States were bound 
to the former by a treaty of amity and commerce, which 
should be scrupulously maintained on their part, so long 
as its stipulations were adhered to by the Mexican autho- 
rities.* Moreover, it was said, that the United States 

* State Papers. — Hon. John Forsyth's Correspondence with General 
Memucan Hunt, the Texan envoy. 



CONVENTION BETWEEN ENGLAND AND TEXAS. 305 

might justly be suspected of a disregard of the friendly- 
purposes of the compact, if the overtures of Texas were 
even to be reserved for future consideration, as this would 
imply a disposition to espouse the quarrel with Mexico, — 
a disposition at variance with the spirit of the treaty, and 
the uniform policy and obvious welfare of the United 
States.* The President even doubted the constitutionality 
of annexing a foreign independent state to the confederacy ; 
under all circumstances, he deemed it inexpedient at that 
period to agitate the measure. 

The refusal of Mr. Van Buren to accept the proffer of 
the Texan envoy, compelled his government to look else- 
where for that aid and protection her condition demanded, 
and to form such an alliance which would best conduce to 
the increase of her wealth, population, and national great- 
ness. On the 14th of November, 1840, a convention was 
concluded between England and Texas, in which the for- 
mer agreed to offer her mediation for the adjustment of 
the difficulties existing with Mexico. The British envoy, 
in pursuance of this agreement, tendered the mediation of 
his government, which was unhesitatingly declined by 
Santa Anna, who would not have dared to entertain a pro- 
position of peace with Texas, upon any terms save those 
based upon the relinquishment of her rights as a sovereign 
independent state, and her return into the bosom of the 
Mexican republic. Had he consented to the solicitations 
of England, and acknowledged the independence of Texas, 
he would have been degraded from his high estate, and his 
name would have been execrated through all time by his 
fierce, jealous, and vindictive countrymen; who, blinded 
by pride and ignorance, imagined themselves a very pow- 
erful nation ! 

In 1842, Texas applied to the governments of Great 
Britain, France, and the United States, requesting their 

* State Papers. 
20 



306 OBSTINACY OF MEXICO. 

joint interposition for the settlement of the questions at 
issue between herself and Mexico. The two latter readily 
acceded to this mode of associating their influence, but the 
former power declined to unite with them, qualifying her 
refusal, however, by suggesting that each of the three might 
act separately in behalf of Texas. Santa Anna refused to 
listen to the remonstrances of the representatives of the 
enlightened governments above mentioned,* and it was 
mot until 1843, that the President of Mexico consented to 
a suspension of hostilities ; which terminated as related in 
the preceding chapter. The perverse obstinacy of Mexico 
in pejecting the solicitations of other nations, who had re- 
cognized the independence of the territory north of the Rio 
Grande, was not to be extenuated, inasmuch as she herself 
was indebted to those very states for the position she 
occupied as a sovereign power. Th€ citizens of the Ameri- 
can republic had not only furnished her, during her struggle 
with Spain, with men, money, and munitions of war, but 
had been the first to welcome her into the family of na- 
tions ; whose alliance she has disgraced, by her wanton 
and licentious career, prostituting the gifts, nature and 
circumstance have lavished upon her, in the prosecution 
of a policy at once unjust, selfish, and ignoble. No sooner 
had she thrown off" the fetters which had bound her to 
iSpain, than she turned like a fugitive convict upon the 
[people who had succored her, and commenced the system 
of spoliation and insult which she has since maintained 
until a very recent period; violating treaties, trampling 
upon the rights of American citizens, and setting at nought 
every principle of international law. 

JMerchants in the pursuit of lawful commerce, who 
sought the shores of Mexico, were robbed of their property, 
their vessels were seized, their cargoes confiscated, and if 

* Correspondence between the Texan envoys and J. C. Calhoun, 
Secretary of State, May 15, 1844. 



AGGRESSIONS OF MEXICO. 307 

resistance was made against these outrages, the crews and 
owners were cast into prison among the vilest felons, 
where, devoured by vermin and filth, they remained until 
released by some fortunate accident. Scores of examples 
might be cited in proof of the above statement. On the 
5th of April, 1831, a treaty of amity, commerce, and navi- 
gation, was signed by the plenipotentiaries of the northern 
and southern confederacies, the first article of which de- 
clares: "That there shall be a firm, inviolable, and uni- 
versal peace, and a true and sincere friendship, between 
the United States of America and the United Mexican 
States in all the extent of their possessions and territories, 
and between their people and citizens, respectively, with- 
out distinction of persons or places." 

For a brief period the authorities of Mexico fulfilled 
the stipulations of the treaty, but the loose morality en- 
gendered by the civil wars which soon after distracted the 
country, re-awakened the spirit of oppression, and the old 
system of insult and injury was renewed with a reckless 
disregard of every principle of justice. The remonstrances 
and protests made by the American envoys against these 
outrages, were either replied to by promises of redress 
which were never observed, or passed over in silent con- 
tempt. If the government of Mexico needed vessels for 
the transportation of troops to some revolted province on 
the coast, its officers seized with impunity those lying in the 
harbors, and appropriated them without the least compunc- 
tion, or remuneration to the crews turned adrift in a strange 
land. American citizens were murdered upon the highways 
and in the streets of the capital, and neither the exequator 
of the consul nor the commission of the envoy was a suffi- 
cient protection against the wanton violence of the people 
of this country. The broad seal of the United States of 
the north, was scarcely as much respected as that of the 
Cantons of Switzerland, and even the flag of the confed- 
eracy was not free from the insults heaped upon all that 



308 FORBEARANCE OF THE UNITED STATES. 

claimed its folds as a defence.* The revolution which 
was so successfully achieved by the colonists beyond the 
Rio Grande, and the abortive attempt of Mexico to anni- 
hilate the rebels, enkindled a lively resentment in the 
breasts of not only the Mexican leaders, but in the masses, 
whose boastful pride had been so signally humbled during 
that brief but sanguinary conflict ; and the cry of ven- 
geance against the Texans, and the whole Anglo-American 
race re-echoed throughout the land. The Mexican pleni- 
potentiary at Washington, acting under orders from his 
superiors, did not hesitate to reproach the government of 
the States with being the instigators of the revolt in Texas ; 
and after venting his indignation in no very courteous 
language withdrew to his own country. And yet, notwith- 
standing these accumulated injuries, the Congress of the 
nation, with a forbearance unusual under such circum- 
stances, refrained from adopting a hostile policy toward the 
southern republic, but recommended that a demand should 
be made upon Mexico for the redress of the manifold 
grievances sustained by the people of the United States, 
and if Mexico refused to make immediate reparation, then 
it was announced that the American government would 
seek satisfaction at the point of the bayonet, or by repri- 
sals upon the Mexican marine.! 

In the summer of 1837, a special envoy was sent to 
the south, charged with authority to demand redress for 
the last time. On the 20th of July this personage ad- 
dressed a formal communication to Bustamente upon this 
subject. IMine days elapsed before an answer was re- 
turned, at the end of which time the Mexican minister 
who presided over the bm-eau of foreign affairs replied, 
that his government was exceedingly desirous to bring 
the questions in dispute between the two republics to a 

* Message of the President of the U. S. to Congress, February, 1837. 
■J- Report of the Committees on Foreign Relations to the Senate and 
House of Representatives, 1837, 



PROCRASTINATING POLICY OF MEXICO. 309 

speedy and equitable adjustment, and that " the principles 
of public right, the sacred obligations imposed by inter- 
national law, and the religious faith of treaties," should 
be the only guides which his government would adopt 
for its conduct in the settlement of the existing difficulties. 
He also added, that an examination should be made into 
the causes of complaint, and the decision of his govern- 
ment made known through its envoy at Washington. 
Toward the close of this year the latter functionary 
informed the American Secretary of State, that out of the 
whole number of cases of public and personal wrong 
which had been submitted to the consideration of the 
Mexican authorities, but four had been decided, one of 
which had been favorably disposed of.* This procrasti- 
nating policy was, under the circumstances, an aggrava- 
tion of the injuries already received, and caused even the 
prudent Executive of the States to vdnce under the inflic- 
tion. In his message to Congress, December 5th, 1837, 
that personage declared it his painful duty to return the 
subject of the Mexican indemnity to the legislative body, 
to whom it belonged to decide upon " the time, the mode, 
and the measure of redress " demanded by the conduct of 
that power toward the citizens and government of this 
country. 

It cannot be doubted, that if any other nation upon 
earth had acted in this manner in its intercourse with this 
confederacy, an appeal w^ould have been made to arms, 
and satisfaction would have been sought at the cannon's 
mouth ; but the very weakness of Mexico was a better 
protection against the just indignation of her sister re- 
public than countless fleets and armies. Neither the 
people nor the government were disposed to forfeit their 
self-respect by resorting to force with a neighboring state, 
while the least hope of an amicable adjustment of the 

* Message of President Van Buren, December, 1837. 



310 MAGNITUDE OF MEXICAN SPOLIATIONS. 

difficulties remained. Accordingly, negotiation was deem- 
ed the best policy ; and while the French were cutting the 
Gordian knot by blowing up the castle of San Juan, and 
thus obtaining redress, the American diplomatist at the 
capital was vainly endeavoring to unravel the entangled 
web, in which Mexican cunning had involved a simple 
question of right. 

After a whole year had been consumed in diplomatic 
correspondence, a convention was signed by the parties 
on the 11th of April, 1839, for the settlement of claims 
preferred by citizens of the States against the Mexican 
republic. The board of commissioners appointed under 
the convention was not organized until August, 1840, nor 
did they proceed to perform their duties even then ; the 
Mexicans, whose object was to gain time, raising objec- 
tions at every step of the proceedings ; not a single claim 
was considered until the following December. Having 
after many delays arranged the preliminaries, an umpire 
was selected to decide all of those cases upon which the 
board could not agree. During the eighteen months 
occupied by the commission in the discharge of its specific 
duties, the claims submitted to its consideration amounted 
to the immense sum of six millions, two hundred and 
ninety-one thousand, six hundred and four dollars and 
fifty-eight cents. The magnitude of the indemnity claim- 
ed shows to what extent Mexico had carried her aggres- 
sions. Of the above amount, two millions, twenty-six 
thousand, one hundred and thirty-nine dollars and sixty- 
eight cents was allowed by the board as good and lawful 
claims, which should have been paid without delay, in 
accordance with the stipulations of the convention ; Avhich 
terminated in February, 1842, before the commissioners 
had examined the whole number of applications for re- 
dress presented to them. At the time when the board 
adjourned, the umpire had not rendered his decision upon 
claims amounting to nearly one million of dollars, which 



SECOND CONVENTION WITH MEXICO. 311 

had been passed by the American officials, but had been 
objected to by those of Mexico. These were, in conse- 
quence, left undisposed of, the umpire ceasing to exercise 
his authority after the expiration of the term of the com- 
mission.* 

Instead of insisting upon the immediate payment of the 
ascertained debt, and compelling Mexico to liquidate it as 
France had done under far less aggravated circumstances, 
the government of the United States yielded to the solici- 
tations of Mexico, and entered into a second convention 
with her on the 30th of January, 1843, in which it was 
stipulated that the interest on the claims which had been 
awarded, should be paid on the 11th day of the following 
April. The principal sum and the interest thereon was 
to be paid within five j^ears, in equal installments every 
three months. The southern republic did so far comply 
with the terms of the last compact as to pay the interest 
due in April, and three of the twenty installments. The 
government of the States, under the peculiar circumstan- 
ces connected with the installments, which were to be paid 
in the spring and summer of 1844, assumed the respon- 
sibilities of Mexico and discharged them to the claim- 
ants .f It was provided by the sixth article of the agree- 
ment of January 1843, that a new arrangement should be 
made for the final adjustment of all those claims which 
had not been decided by the joint commission of 1839. 
In accordance with this provision a third convention was 
signed at the city of Mexico on the 20th of November 
1843, which, being submitted to the Senate of the States, 
was ratifi,ed and amended. Anxious to avoid a settlement 
of the indemnity, Santa Anna eagerly seized upon the 
amendments offered by the Senate as a pretext for retard- 
ing the progress of the negotiation, and refused his sanc- 

* Vide Executive message, December 8, 1846. 

f Executive message, December 8th, 1838. See Appendix, XIII.. 



312 RENEWAL OF ANNEXATION QUESTION. 

tion to the alterations which had been made in the origi- 
nal instrument; gaining by this skillful manoBu^Te the time 
which was of vital importance to him and the administra- 
tion which had commenced under the new constitution 
based upon the plan of Tacubaya. 

The question of the annexation of Texas, in the mean- 
time, had been gradually forcing itself upon the attention 
of the authorities and people of the States. The time had 
now arrived when that important movement must be con- 
summated or be forever rejected; as Texas, it was evi- 
dent, must seek an ally powerful enough to render her the 
assistance her exhausted condition demanded. She was 
deeply involved in debt, and it was imperative that some- 
thing should be done to extricate her from the difficulties 
which threatened seriously to affect her prosperity; and 
the Texans, with one accord, turned toward their former 
country, and again asked to be admitted into the republic 
under which they had been born, reared, and had lived 
until within a recent period. The open and avowed ef- 
forts which the agents of England and France were then 
making to prevent the union, quickened the slumbering 
energies of the American Cabinet, and urged immediate 
action upon this momentous subject. On the 16th day of 
October, 1843, the Hon. A. P. Upshur, Secretary of State, 
addressed ;a communication to the Texan envoy, propos- 
ing to renew the negotiations for the annexation of the 
territory north of the Rio Grande to the northern confede- 
racy. The latter personage returned a favorable answer 
to the proposition, and in a few months the preliminaries 
were submitted to the parties interested. 

President Tyler was an ardent supporter of the move- 
ment, and applied the whole weight of his influence to 
bring it to a successful issue. In his message accompany- 
ing the treaty, he said, that as Texas had been recognized 
by the principal powers of the world as an independent 
isovereign State, she had an unquestionable right to dis- 



TREATY OF ANNEXATION SIGNED. 313 

pose of herself as she thought best ; that the United States 
was disposed to pursue a conciliatory policy toward Mexi- 
co, being actuated by no unjust spirit of aggrandizement, 
but looking simply to their own security in extending the 
limits of the confederacy toward the south-west. A treaty 
of annexation was accordingly di-awn up and signed, April 
12th, 1844, by J. C. Calhoun, the successor of the ill-fated 
Upshur in the department of State, and Isaac Van Zandt, 
and J. Pinckney Henderson, ministers plenipotentiary on 
the part of Texas. On the 19th of the same month the 
Secretary communicated the fact of a treaty having been 
signed to the government of Mexico through the indivi- 
dual then acting as charge.* Mr. Calhoun enjoined the lat- 
ter to give the Mexican government the strongest assu- 
rance that, in adopting this measure, the States were in- 
fluenced by no hostile or disrespectful feelings toward the 
authorities or people of Mexico. "That the step had 
been forced on the government of the United States in 
self-defence, in consequence of the policy adopted by 
Great Britain in reference to the abolition of slavery in 
Texas .f" The charge was also requested to inform the 
Mexican government that the States had not taken this 
measure without a "full view of all possible consequen- 
ces," while at the same time it was fondly hoped that the 
amicable relations subsisting between the republics would 
continue undisturbed. That it was the desire of the Ameri- 
can Executive to settle all the questions which might arise 
from this or any other cause, in the most liberal and 
satisfactory manner. The boundary indemnity, and other 
difficulties, it was presumed, would be definitely arranged by 
the minister who had been lately appointed to the legation 
at Mexico. 

Mr. Calhoun had applied not only his great influence, 
but every faculty of his mind, to consummate the annexa- 

* Gen. Thompson had returned home the preceding Mareh. 
f Vide the Secretary's correspondence, April, 1844. 



314 CALHOUN'S POLICY. 

tion of the territory west of the Sabine to the country 
over whose councils he had so long exercised so potent 
a sway ; and it was owing to the energy and ability of 
this distinguished statesman that the great question was 
finally disposed of in the way in which it was. It must 
be confessed, nevertheless, that the arguments which the 
Secretary brought to bear upon the subject were all one- 
sided, and seemed to have been suggested by a determi- 
nation to preserve, foster, and maintain the peculiar 
institutions of the south, rather than by a desire to benefit 
the whole confederacy.* V Pushing the doctrine of state 
rights to extremity, he had circumscribed his views, and 
could see no danger to the republic which did not ap- 
proach the frontiers of the slave-holding portion of the 
Union. But the unquestionable' talents, spotless integrity, 
and the absence of all intrigue and chicanery, which has 
ever distinguished the champion of the south during his 
long public life, must for ever command the respect of the 
American people, in spite of the faults which have at 
times obscured the brilliancy of his political career. 

On the 22d of April, 1844, President Tyler submitted 
the treaty of annexation to the Senate of the United 
States, for its approval and ratification. In his message 
accompanying the instrument, the Executive strongly ad- 
vocated the measure as one demanded by a commanding 
necessity, the highest considerations of public policy, and 
the general good.f One of the principal objections urged 
by political philosophers against the republican system of 
government is, that while it guarantees equal laws adapt- 
ed to the wants of the people, encourages public spirit, 
industry, frugality, and peace, its operations are delayed, 
its policy disclosed, and measures of the most vital 
importance rendered abortive, by the obligation of the 

* Vide Mr. Calhoun's correspondence with the British Envoy, 
April, 1844. 

f Appendix, XII. 



VIOLATION OF RULE OF SENATE. 315 

authorities to submit all questions of moment to the con- 
sideration of their constituents. The conduct of the Sen- 
ate in regard to the treaty of annexation, confirms the 
above mentioned fact ; and we must acknowledge that it 
is one of the few imperfections which, thank God, is 
inherent in the political dispensation it is our happiness 
to live under. The union of a foreign, independent terri- 
tory to the already wide extended domain of the republic, 
was a matter of too much consequence to be acted upon 
without great deliberation. There was no precedent to 
guide the representatives in the disposition of the ques- 
tion; and several senators, doubting its constitutionality, 
vehemently protested against it upon those grounds, as- 
serting that there was no parity between the proposed 
acquisition of Texas and the annexation of Louisiana 
and Florida, which were dependencies of France and 
Spain, not separate sovereignties. The deliberations of 
the Senate were conducted in executive, or secret session; 
yet there was found, even in that august assembly, one 
whose prurient desire for notoriety, or the hope of benefit- 
ing his party, led him to violate the sacred injunction of 
secrecy imposed upon the members, by surreptitiously 
making known to the public the treaty and accompany- 
ing documents.* In consequence of this disclosure, it 
became necessary to submit the measure to the conside- 
ration of the people. 

On the 29th of April, 1844, Mr. Crittenden of Kentucky, 
introduced a resolution for the removal of the seal of se- 
crecy from the treaty of annexation. This motion was 
debated at length, and after the expiration of several days, 
was finally passed on the 15th of May, and read, as amend- 
ed, as follows: " Whereas the annexation of the republic 
of Texas to the United States is a subject of great impor- 

* The penalty for violating the rules of the United States Senate 
in this particular is expulsion. 



316 POLICY OF HOUSTON. 

tance, upon which the will of the people of this Union 
ought to be consulted; and whereas the treaty for that an- 
nexation now before the Senate, is of great moment, 
and there is nothing in said treaty or the documents ac- 
companying it, which requires the further observance of 
secrecy, and, resting as it does upon its own peculiar cir- 
cumstances, cannot be drawn into precedent for different 
cases in time to come ; therefore the injunction is hereby 
removed from said treaty, and all documents and papers 
in relation thereto, now before the Senate." Thus was this 
important movement defeated for a time, to the disappoint- 
ment of the administration and a large portion of the 
people, who had looked forward to its consummation, if 
not as a means of extending the " area of freedom," at 
least in the hope, that by increasing the territory of the 
republic, its resources, stability, and power would be aug- 
mented in the same proportion. The Texans were deeply 
affected by the rejection of their generous proposal, and 
the party which favored the schemes of England and 
France now raised its " diminished head," and loudly pro- 
claimed the folly the people had been guilty of, in refusing 
the alliance of the European powers. 

Among the most prominent members of this faction 
was the Executive of Texas, whose conduct throughout the 
whole affair seemed governed by the crafty, artful policy 
of Machiavel, rather than by the honorable principles 
which should ever guide a republican magistrate.* 

* Vide Gen. Murphy's dispatch to Mr. Legare, July 8th, 1843. 



CHAPTER II. 

Satisfaction of the people of Mexico at the rejection of the Treaty of 
Annexation — Castle of Perote — Description of that Fortress — 
Texan Prisoners — Houston's Proclamation — Yucatan Indemnity 
— Condition of Political Parties — Santmanet's Expedition to To- 
basco — Its Result — Barbarity of Ampudia — Senor Rejon and the 
American Envoy — Santa Anna's demand upon Congress — The 
four Million Grant — Revolt of Paredes — Progress of the Revolu- 
tion — Surrender, Trial, and Banishment of Santa Anna — Intrigues 
of Foreign Ministers — General Taylor encamps at Corpus Christi. 

The refusal of the Senate of the United States to sanc- 
tion the treaty of annexation, reassured the Mexican go- 
vernment, and softened the feelings of jealousy and hatred, 
which had recently prevailed against the northern republic, 
and when Wilson Shannon, the American minister, arrived 
at the capital soon after, he was received in a manner, 
which plainly indicated the desire of the authorities to 
renew the friendly relations which had lately been inter- 
rupted. Indeed it was not Santa Anna's policy to involve 
his country in a wax with the States ; he of all men depre- 
cated such an event, knowing from actual observation the 
immense disparity between the resources and power of the 
two confederacies; moreover, he had difficulties to con- 
tend with at the very threshold of his palace, sufficient to 
overwhelm a man of less ability. His experience had 
taught him, that it would be in vain to attempt to sustain 
a contest with the slightest hope of success with the Tex- 
ans, much less with the whole Anglo-American race — rich, 

(317) 



318 THE CASTLE OF PEROTE. 

powerful, and enterprising, beyond all other nations of the 
new world. The American envoy was therefore a wel- 
come intruder upon the shores of Mexico, whose arrival 
was hailed by all thoughtful men as the harbinger of peace. 
No sooner, however, had the questions at issue been sub- 
mitted to the consideration of the government, than the 
old wounds were opened afresh, and it became evident to 
the most careless observer that the matters in dispute 
could scarcely be settled by Mr. Shannon and the Senor 
Rejon, who had charge of the bureau of foreign affairs. 
The termination of their negotiations will be noticed pre- 
sently. 

At an elevation of 7719 feet above the level of the sea, 
in a valky environed by steep and lofty mountains, above 
which towers the snow crowned volcanoofOrizava*— which 
of old shown star-like through the darkness, lighting the 
mariner on his way and the pilgrim to his shrine — stands 
the town and castle of Perote, upon the site of an ancient 
Mexican village called by the natives Pinahuizapan. The 
castle is situated about a mile north- w«st of the latter, on 
the left of the great road leading from the city of Vera Cruz 
to the capital ; toward the east rises a precipitous chain of 
heights, a little more than half a league distant, which 
commands the castle, town, and valley. The fortress is a 
regular fortification of four bastions built of hard stone, 
and is quadrangulai* in form. The bastions, like those of 
San Juan, project from each angle, and are about one hun- 
dred and fifty feet long by about sixty broad. 

The curtain connecting the bastions is thirty feet high, 
fourteen feet thick at the base, and ten at the top. The 
walls are smToundcd by a ditch fifty feet wide, and eight 
or ten in depth. The entrance to the castle is by a 
drawbridge and gateway opening towards the east. The 

* Orizava or Star mountain is one of the highest peaks in Mexico, it 
is visible over land and sea for a great distance during an eruption. 



HOUSTON'S PROCLAMATION 319 

fortress incloses several acres of ground, in the middle of 
which is placed the court, an acre in extent, environed by 
two-story buildings, which are occupied as officer's quar- 
ters, by the chapel, and commandant's residence. Below, 
in the same structure, is the barracks of the garrison, 
store houses, armories, and stables : the magazines are in 
the bastions. Along each side of the interior of the outer 
walls, is a range of cells, lofty and arched, lighted above 
the ponderous doors by grated windows; the floors are 
composed of cement several inches in depth. More than 
fifty pieces of cannon are mounted upon the walls, and 
command the approaches to the stronghold. The town of 
Perote may be regarded as the outworks of the castle, the 
houses being built of stone, each one is capable of being 
converted into a fortress strong enough to check the ad- 
vance of an ordinary force, if an attempt should be made 
to pass through the narrow streets, through which lies the 
road to the capital. The Texan prisoners, who had been 
captured at Mier, had been removed to this gloomy prison 
for safe-keeping, during the preceding year, where mana- 
cled like convicts, they were forced to perform the vilest 
drudgery. 

The treatment they had received, at all times disgrace- 
ful to humanity, had at length become unbearable. Fed 
upon diet such as no one could accept of, unless upon the 
verge of starvation ; naked, devoured with vermin, sick, 
and in chains, the brave survivors of the disastrous expe- 
dition had yet to experience the most melancholy of all 
feelings, that of being forsaken by their countrymen and 
friends. Shortly after they had surrendered to the over- 
whelming force under Ampudia, President Houston ad- 
dressed a proclamation to the world " denouncing the Mier 
expedition as a lawless band of adventurers, unsanctioned 
by the authorities of the country whence they came, and 
therefore unentitled to the consideration and protection, 
which by civilized usages, and of right, belong to prisoners 



320 TEXAN PRISONERS RELEASED. 

of war." * He had also kept back the money appropria- 
ted by the Texan Congress for the relief of the prisoners, 
and had failed to perform his duties, by neglecting to 
negotiate for their release. f 

To those who have penetrated beneath the courtly 
exterior with which the former executive of Texas clothed 
his slightest words and deeds, the complaints of the vic- 
tims of his policy will not appear improbable. One may 
say of that personage, that he was never himself save 
when not himself, and that the false adage of in vino 
Veritas, in reference to his case, ceases to be a solecism. 

Toward the close of the summer of 1844 the unfortu- 
nate prisoners were released. Those who had been 
carried off from Bexar, by General Wo 11, in 1842, had 
been, after sixteen months' imprisonment, turned adrift, in 
the preceding March, in an enemy's country, to find their 
way back to their homes, which had been rendered deso- 
late by the fierce ravages of the marauding Mexican.t 
The Convention, concluded the 14th of December, 1843, 
between the Central Government and the department of 
Yucatan, which had guaranteed to the latter certain com- 
mercial privileges, had been openly violated upon several 
occasions by the former, during the present administi-ation : 
unavoidably so, perhaps, as the financial difRculties of the 
state demanded that every nei-ve should be strained to 
meet the engagements which had been entered into with 
foreign powers. The people of the peninsula were not 
disposed to sympathize with the supreme authorities of 
Mexico, on the contrary they seized the moment of 
embarrassment as one propitious for obtaining redi'ess. 

* Memorial of the prisoners to his Excellency, Charles Bankhead, 
the British envoy to Mexico. 

t Ibid. 

X General Thompson's exertions in behalf of the captive Texans 
deserves the gratitude of every American, fdr now they are once more 
citizens of this Republic. 



INTRIGUES OF FACTIONS. 321 

The commissioners Barrera, de Leon, and Rejon, wha 
had been appointed by the provincial government, arrived 
at the capital, and commenced their duties in the month 
of July, 1844, at a crisis when the affairs of the republic- 
began to alarm all those who really felt an interest in the 
preservation of the existing dynasty. 

The Yucatanese had already proved themselves to be 
more than equal to the onerous duty of governing them- 
selves, and had prospered during the interval which had 
elapsed between their separation from the union and the 
convention of 1843. It was scarcely to be expected, there- 
fore, that the people of that department would quietly sub- 
mit to the infraction of the treaty which Mexico herself 
had proposed in order to reclaim her revolted province. 
Santa Anna received the commissioners coldly, and evaded 
their demands for redress with the admirable skill charac- 
teristic of his policy. The envoys were, however, not to 
be deceived even by the crafty Executive of the most art- 
ful government in the world, but soon discerned the inten- 
tions of the President in delaying to adjust the claims of 
their constituents. The capital at this time was in a state 
of ferment ; the adherents of Bustamente were intrigu- 
ing for his return to power — the federalists, heart-sick of 
the military despotism under which the nation groaned, 
were actively preparing to strike one more blow for free- 
dom and the constitution ; another faction, headed by somfr 
distinguished officers of the army and several prelates of 
the highest rank in the Mexican churih, despairing per- 
haps of ever seeing the country in a prosperous condition 
under the republican system, were secretly but strenuously 
endeavoring to undermine the present dynast^' and to 
erect a monarchical government in its stead. 

Throwing themselves into the political arena with the 
alacrity of practiced revolutionists, the Yucatanese fanned 
the seditious fires which glowed in the hearts of the mal- 
contents, and actuated by a vindictive desire to humble 
21 



322 SAINTMANET'S EXPEDITION. 

the haughty chief who had slighted their demands, array- 
.ed themselves in the ranks of Bustamente's partisans, 
^nvhose tyranny had first caused the people of the penin- 
sula to separate from the republic. About this period the 
feelings of the civilized portion of humanity were again 
outraged by one of those deeds of hellish barbarity for 
which Mexico and the cannibals of remote islands are 
alike distinguished. At the close of the year 1843, Gene- 
ral Santmanet, the governor of Tobasco, headed an insur- 
rectionary movement against the supreme authority, which 
proving unsuccessful he fled to the Havanna. Here he 
remained during the winter, but was finally peremptorily 
ordered to leave that city by O'Donnel, the Captain Gen- 
eral of Cuba, in February, 1844. The exile retired to New 
Orleans, where he enlisted a motley crew of adventurers, 
composed of French, Spanish, and German desperadoes, 
who, at all times, are to be found wandering listlessly 
about that great commercial emporium; where,I believe, it 
is possible to fit out an expedition to the realms of dark- 
ness. Procuring a vessel, Santmanet embarked with 
these "cankers of a calm world, and a long peace" and 
sailed for the Mexican coast in the summer of 1844. 

Arriving off" the Rio Tobasco, the adventurers already 
conceived themselves, in anticipation, the masters of the 
capital of the province, toward which they were rapidly 
advancing, when in attempting to cross tlie bar at the 
mouth of the river, the ship was ^vrecked. Escaping a 
watery grave, the party experienced a worse fate by fall- 
ing into the hands of General Don Pedro de Ampudia, 
the commandant of the department, and the sworn foe of 
Santmanet. No mercy was shown to the forlorn wretch- 
es ; a hasty shrift and a bloody grave, were all that M'as 
vouchsafed them. Who knows what great spirits may 
have thus perished upon that obscm-e and distant strand? 
The leader of the expedition was reserved to glut the eyes 
of his vindictive adversary, who could not conceal his ex- 



SANTA ANNA'S ABUSE OF POWER. 323 

ultation at the condition of the fallen chief. A few hours 
before his execution Santmanet addressed a few simple 
lines to his young wife, wherein his character may be read 
as "in a book;" the unfortunate General had a warm heart, 
full of noble impulses, and a courage which rose with the 
emergency ; qualities which, when united, form the morale 
of what we call heroes. The tragedy at Tobasco closed 
with the death of Santmanet, whose head was stricken 
from his body and hoilecl in oil by the order of General Am- 
pudia; the gory trophy was then placed upon a pole and 
left to blacken in the tropical sun. 

The administration of Santa Anna, which had from 
the beginning been exceedingly oppressive, now became 
positively tyrannical. His will was the absolute law of 
the land, over which he ruled uncontrolled by law or con- 
stitution, construing both as it suited his policy. Sur- 
rounded by sycophants and parasites, the president seem- 
ed reckless of all consequences, provided his own imme- 
diate wants w^ere supplied ; the revenues of the state 
were squandered openly by those w^hose duty it was to 
appropriate them to the maintenance of the government, 
and the preservation of the national credit. The install- 
ments on the indemnity due to the United States in April 
and July had not been paid, although large sums had 
been extorted rfrom the people for that purpose ; forced 
loans, contributions, and direct taxations, followed each 
other, and paralyzed the industry of the nation ; the 
tariff had been raised to an exorbitant rate, monopolies 
were sold to the highest bidder, and even the clergy were 
threatened with spoliation at this crisis ; the naturally 
acute mind of the Executive appeared to have lost its 
balance, and he rushed headlong upon his ruin, like the 
bull in the amphitheatre upon the lance of the matadore. 
The correspondence between Mr. Shannon and the min- 
ister Rejon, had at length assumed a character decidedly 
hostile; the policy of the United States in relation to the 



324 EFFORTS OF THE NEW FACTION. 

Texas affair was the subject chiefly dwelt upon; and it 
must be confessed that they made the most of it, under 
the circumstances. The Mexican secretary, recapitulating 
the injuries his government had received at the hands of 
her sister republic, insolently asserted that the latter 
had conspired to plunder the former by first sending co- 
lonists to Texas, then inciting them to revolt, and finally 
consenting to admit them into the confederacy. To such 
accusations there was but one answer, and the envoy 
soon found himself involved in subjects in nowise con- 
nected with the object of his mission; his antagonist 
endeavoring to delay all final action upon the question 
at issue ; and in this he was eminently successful. 

During the last year a new and influential party had 
sprung into existence, which ultimately became really for- 
midable from the material of which it was composed 
rather than from the number of its adherents. This 
faction was the monarchquistas, who advocated a revolu- 
tion in favor of a monarchical government as the one 
best adapted to the condition of Mexico. Several distin- 
guished personages had arrayed themselves in the ranks 
of this party ; among others the archbishop of Mexico 
had publicly announced his determination to support 
its principles, as they were more in accordance with those 
of the Church than even the rule of a military republican 
despot. The public press of Europe applauded the efforts 
of this parricidal faction, which sought, with sacrilegious 
hands, to despoil the nation of even the shadow of liberty 
Santa Anna and his compeers had been forced to yield to 
them. The country was in danger from the secret machi- 
nations of this party, which excited the indignation of 
every patriot, while Santa Anna laughed at their attempts 
to subvert his dynasty by means of a hireling press and 
a superannuated ecclesiastic. This feeling of security 
caused him to disregard the warnings he received, and to 



PREPARATIONS OF SANTA ANNA. 325 

pursue the tyrannical policy his administration had been 
characterized by from the commencement. 

Although the Mexicans did not positively believe that 
the annexation question would be disposed of without 
their consent, they were prepared, in the event of its 
taking place, to assert their claims to the sovereignty of 
the country beyond the Del Norte. The presidial corps 
on that stream were strengthened as much as possible ; 
the garrisons at Matamoras, Mier, and Monterey were 
augmented, and every thing betokened that the long 
threatened invasion of Texas was about to be carried 
into effect. The President of Mexico addressed an urgent 
appeal to the legislative body for an additional appropria- 
tion to enable him to defeat the perfidious designs of the 
States, by reclaiming by force of arms the rebellious 
province. The deputies had been so often solicited to 
perform this very duty that they had become quite insen- 
sible to the eloquent messages of the Executive, and 
were, in consequence, not disposed to comply with his 
requisition. In no instance, of his long political career, 
did Santa Anna ever fail in cajoling, or forcing Congress 
into a compliance with his demands. By dint of threats, 
promises, and bribes, he finally obtained their reluctant 
consent to raise four millions of dollars, for the avowed 
purpose of prosecuting the war. There was but one 
method by which this sum could be obtained : this was 
by resorting to the odious measure of forced loans. Of 
all the wrongs of dominion, it is perhaps the greatest to 
raise supplies in this manner for the support of an 
administration, as it is opposed to one of the principal 
objects for which all governments are founded, the 
security of the property of the people ; when, therefore, 
the Executive attempted to levy the money appropriated 
by the representatives, it excited universal indignation 
throughout the republic, and in the end caused the 



Sfg REVOLT OF PAREDES. 

overthrow of the chief who, in spite of the murmurs of 
the nation, persisted in his schemes. The federalists, 
seizing the moment when the tide of discontent was at 
the flood, pronounced in favor of the constitution. 

In the latter part of 1844, General Paredes, the 
former friend of the President, issued a pronunciamento 
against him at Guadalaxara, denouncing him as a tyrant, 
and an enemy to the state, which had suffered unpar- 
ralleled injm-ies during the existence of his dynasty. 
The insurrectionary movement soon became formidable ; 
and in a few weeks the departments of Jalisco, Zaca- 
tecas, a portion of Puebla, and San Luis Potosi, were 
in open revolt. Santa Anna endeavored to stem the tor- 
rent which set against him, but in vain ; his good fortune 
had changed; his former adherents deserting him, swelled 
the ranks of those who exulted in his approaching fall; 
thousands of the disaffected flocked to the standard of 
the rebels, whose force was soon augmented to eight 
thousand men. The province of Oaxaca, and the district 
of Aguas Calientes, became infected with the revolution- 
ary spirit, and even the capital exhibited the signs of an 
approaching storm. The federalists and monarchists had 
combined to undo him, and the populace were easily ex- 
cited to rise against one who had restrained their turbu- 
lent passions upon so many occasions. Levying a con- 
tribution for the support of the army he had mustered to 
defend himself, Santa Anna left the city of Mexico for the 
purpose of quelling the revolt. General Canalizo acting as 
president during his absence. Retiring to Queretaro, he 
put himself at the head of his troops, and prepared for 
battle ; he, however, discovered to his dismay, that the 
regiments upon whose arms he had placed his last hopes 
had been tampered with. Several officers deserted him 
at this crisis ; some of these were apprehended, and ex- 
ecuted as traitors by order of the commander-in-chief, 



SURRENDER OF SANTA ANNA. 327 

who, as his foes advanced to meet him, raged like the 
tiger at bay. 

The federal army marched against Santa Anna in the 
early part of December, gaining accessions to its strength 
every hour, while the forces of the President were as 
rapidly diminishing. The latter in vain endeavored to 
arouse the enthusiasm of his sullen soldiery, who no 
longer regarded him with the same feelings. Under 
these circumstances, it became but too evident that he 
could scarcely count upon a victory. Every moment he 
delayed to fight increased the probability of defeat ; with 
ti'eachery in his camp, and formidable enemies upon all 
sides, his situation became perilous in the extreme. The 
federal army at length approached : again Santa Anna, 
with ineffectual eloquence, besought his men to fight for 
their general, who had so often w^itnessed their valor. 
His troops were deaf to his appeals ; and when the 
enemy opened his fire, a few volleys only were answered, 
the army of the President deserting him in a body : 
"The leader of a broken host; 
His standard fallen, his honor lost." 

Santa Anna surrendered himself a captive into the hands 
of his bitterest foes, who sent him to the castle of Perote. 
General Canalize, unable to hold the capital, was obliged 
to yield to the superiority of the revolutionists. During 
the tumults which occurred at this crisis, the leg of Santa 
Anna, which had been buried in the cemetery of Santa 
Paula, was dragged from its resting place, and kicked 
by the vile rabble through the streets of the city. On 
the 7th of December, 1844, Don Joaquin de Herrera, 
a staunch federalist, was appointed President ad interim 
of the Mexican republic, and was immediately inaugu- 
rated into office. 

Immured in the gloomy fortress within whose walls 
had pined so many victims of his vindictive policy, the 



ggS SANTA ANNA BANISHED. 

fallen chief was left in dreary solitude to reflect upon his 
past career. Unlike his compatriot the illustrious Victoria, 
who had lately departed this life full of years and renown, 
Santa Anna could find in the past " no sweet oblivious 
antidote" to allay the pangs of remorse or the terrible fears 
of the future, which racked his soul, and filled him with 
horror. The Mexican Congress acting as grand jurors, 
proceeded to examine into the charges preferred against the 
late Executive, whose personal and political enemies w^ere 
both numerous and powerful, and unhesitatingly demanded 
that he should be punished as a traitor to the republic. 
Those deputies who were disposed to feel more merciful to- 
ward the captive, were constrained from a regard to their 
own safety from defending him; his situation was therefore 
one of extreme peril, and the accused would assuredly have 
been put to death, had not the President, ad interim, inter- 
posed in his behalf.* Herrera, in all respects different 
from his predecessor, was humane, honorable, brave, and 
generous, a great lover of peace and order, but somewhat 
vacillating and infirm of purpose. Through the exertions 
of the President, Santa Anna's life was spared; Congi'ess 
passing a decree banishing him from the territories of the 
republic. The prisoner eagerly accepted the terms upon 

* Santa Anna addressed a communication from Perote, about the close 
of January, 1845, to the Congress, urgently soliciting that they would 
grant him a passport to leave the country, in which case he would pro- 
mise never to return. He also stated that he was willing to appoint an 
adtninistrador to adjust the claims which might be preferred against him, 
pledging his landed property for the payment of the same. This well- 
timed proposition had unquestionably a great influence upon the depu- 
ties in their deliberations. His communication was acted upon by the 
Chambers in secret session, on the night of the 23d of January, and after 
much fierce and angry debate they finally decided to accede to the wishes 
of Herrera, and accordingly passed the decree of banishment, Santa 
Anna's young wife, who was scarcely fifteen years of age, shared the 
;gloomy imprisonment of her spouse at Perote, and accompanied him into 
■exile. 



TEXAS ANNEXED TO THE UNITED STATES. 329 

which he was liberated, and retired with his family and 
suite to Havanna, where, to use his own expression, he 
lived in peace with an easy conscience, notwithstanding 
that he was forced to eat the bread of exile without salt.* 
The federalists having once more regained the ascen- 
dency, turned their attention toward the re-establishment 
of the ancient order of things, and the settlement of the 
difficulties growing out of the Texas affair. The hopes 
which had been entertained that the Senate of the United 
States would refuse to confirm the treaty of annexation, as 
they had done the preceding session, were suddenly crushed 
by the passage of the joint resolutions on the 1st day of 
March, 1845, which provided for the admission of Texas 
into the confederacy upon certain preliminary conditions 
to which the assent of the people of that country was de- 
manded. The resolutions were, in substance, that the 
Congress of the United States consents that the territory 
rightfully belonging to the republic of Texas may be 
erected into a new State with a republican form of govern- 
ment ; all questions of boundary, which may arise with 
other powers, to be subject to adjustment by the general 
government of the Union ; the public lands of Texas to 
be retained by herself, and in no event were her debts, lia- 
bilities, or responsibilities, to become a charge upon the 
government of the United States. 

Four new states of convenient size, in addition to the 
state of Texas, could be subsequently formed out of her 
territory, and be entitled to admission into the confederacy 
by complying with the requirements of the constitution. 
It being understood and provided, that all such new states 
situated north of thirty-six degrees thirty minutes north 
latitude, commonly known as the Missouri compromise 
line, are to be free states, where slavery or involuntary 
servitude is prohibited ; but those lying to the southward 

* Santa Anna's letter to General Tornel, February, 1846. 



330 ALMONTE'S PROTEST. 

of said parallel are to be admitted with or without slavery, 
as the people of the said State may desire. To these reso- 
lutions Senator Walker offered an amendment, pro\iding 
for the return of two representatives from the State of 
Texas, and for an appropriation of one hundred thousand 
dollars to defray the expenses of missions and negotiations 
relating to the subject of annexation The resolutions 
passed the senate by a vote of twenty-seven in the affirm- 
ative, twenty-five members recording their opposition to 
the measure. 

On the 6th of March, Don Juan N 'Almonte, the Mexi- 
can minister plenipotentiary issued a formal protest in the 
name of his government against the action of Congress, 
and demanding his credentials returned to Mexico, filled 
with indignation against what he called the perfidious 
conduct of the American nation. 

When the government of Mexico received an ofiicial 
intimation of the passage of the resolutions authorizing 
the admission of Texas into the States, the Secretary 
addressed a note to Mr. Shannon, informing him that 
after the 28th of March all intercourse must cease between 
the two republics. On the 22d of the same month, 
President Herrera sent forth a proclamation, calling upon 
the governors of the different departments to aid him in 
revenging the insults and encroachments of the United 
States upon the honor and territory of the country. These 
same governors had heard the cry of " wolf" too often to 
be roused from their apathy by the executive appeal. 
Some of them had swelled the same cri-dc-guerre until 
they were hoarse, and the very name of Texas had be- 
come as discordant as the note of the ill-omened bird of 
night. 

On the 7th of April, 1845, the joint committee of both 
branches of the Mexican Congress, to which had been 
referred the Texan affair, reported a project for raising the 
means of resisting the annexation movement. The lesris- 



INTRIGUES OF ENGLAND AND FRANCE. 331 

lature was, at this crisis, divided into cliques and factions, 
each of Avhich was bent upon saving the commonwealth 
in its own peculiar way. The monarchist opposed the 
measures of the federalist, not because they were not 
calculated to meet the present exigencies, but simply 
because they were advocated by the rival party. 

A few honest representatives, who had more patriot- 
ism than party spirit raised their voices in favor of what 
they deemed the cause of their country ; but in vain, 
contention reigned in every heart, and had the enemy 
been at the gates of the capital, the thunder of his cannon 
might have dispersed the assembly, but it would scarcely 
have united the factions. 

Determined to foil the designs of the Americans, at all 
hazards, the government of Mexico readily entered into a 
conspiracy formed by the envoys of England and France, 
and the leaders of the " foreign party " in Texas, to defeat 
the annexation of the latter country, by recognizing her 
as an independent power. On the 27th of March preced- 
ing, Ashbel Smith, the Texan Secretary of State, had af- 
fixed his seal to certain conditions preliminary to a treaty 
of peace with Mexico, which had been laid before the 
Mexican authorities by the Baron Alleye de Cyprey and 
Mr. Charles Bankhead. In the treaty, Texas bound her- 
self not to annex her territory to those of any other 
nation, or become subject to any state whatever, leaving 
the disputed questions of boundary, and other matters, to 
be decided by arbitration. Mexico, on her part, vras to 
acknowledge the independence of Texas, and to sign a 
treaty of amity and commerce with her former province. 
On the 19th of May, Don Luis Gonzaga Cuevas, the 
Mexican Secretary, announced the willingness of his 
government to accede to these terms, and accordingly 
formally signed the same. Official notice of this was 
transmitted to Texas by the French envoy, and on the 4th 
of June, the president of the former issued a proclamation, 



332 SINGULAR POLICY OF PRESIDENT JONES. 

declaring the intelligence he had thus received, to the 
people, ordering, at the same time, a suspension of hos- 
tilities upon the southern frontier. Already this alliance 
of presumptuous plenipotentiaries and false executives — 
for the people of neither country were disposed to settle 
the affair thus — had nearly consummated its purpose, 
when the hopes which had been nourished were suddenly 
blasted by the unexpected unanimity which prevailed 
among the Texans upon the subject of annexation. 

On the 5th of May, Anson Jones, the President of 
Texas, had called upon the nation to elect sixty-one depu- 
ties, that a convention might be formed for the purpose of 
definitely deciding upon the resolutions which had passed 
the American Congress. On the 16th of June the Texan 
legislature met in extra session, for the purpose of delib- 
erating upon the great questions which demanded their 
attention, and on the 18th, they almost unanimously 
passed a joint resolution, accepting the proffered terms 
for the union of the two republics. 

The policy pursued by the Texan Executive throughout 
this affair was truly singular, and his motive for negotia- 
ting with Mexico and the United States, at the same mo- 
ment, upon the same question, remains a myster5^ We 
can only suppose that Houston, who was de facto the real 
actor in this intrigue, had in some way entangled himself 
with the envoys of the European powers, and his creatures 
Jones and Smith, were acting under the instructions of 
that personage in renewing the correspondence with Mexi- 
co. If, as General Houston subsequently declared, he was 
only " coquetting " with the foreigners, his conduct was 
inexcusable and cannot be extenuated by any refinement 
of diplomacy that is based upon the principles of truth 
and honesty. When the action of the government of 
Texas in regard to the annexation resolutions became 
known in Mexico, the Executive of that country reiterated 
the determination of the nation to attempt the re-subjuga- 



GENERAL TAYLOR EMBARICS FOR TEXAS. 333 

tion of the territory beyond the Del Norte. The conven- 
tion which had convened at Austin, in accordance with 
President Jones' proclamation, on the 4th day of July, upon 
the receipt of these warlike menaces requested the go- 
vernment of the States to send a competent military force 
for the protection of the frontier. Accordingly President 
Polk issued orders to Brigadier General Zachary Taylor, 
the commandant of the 1st military department, to advance 
with the division under his command into Texas. General 
Taylor embarked at New Orleans, and landed at St. Jo- 
seph's Island, with a force of fifteen hundred men, in the 
early part of August, 1845; from thence he reached the 
mainland and encamped at Corpus Christi,near the mouth 
of the Rio Nueces, a stream which empties into Aransas 
Bay. This slender army, it was presumed, would, in con- 
junction with the militia of Texas, be sufficient to check 
the march of the Mexicans should they invade the country; 
this was, however, intended more as a corps of observation 
than as one of operation.* 

On the 13th of September, 1845, the government of 
the States made inquiry through their Consul residing at 
Mexico ; " whether the Mexican government would receive 
an envoy, intrusted with full powers to adjust all the ques- 
tions in dispute between the two governments ?" On the 
15th of October an affirmative answer was returned by the 
Secretary of Foreign Relations, who at the same time re- 
quested that the American naval squadron, then on the Mexi- 
can coast should immediately be withdrawn. The fleet 
was ordered off the station, and on the 10th of November 
following, Mr. John Slidell was appointed minister pleni- 
potentiary to the southern republic, vested with ample au- 
thority to settle the vexed questions of the Texas boundary 
and indemnification. 

* Vide the orders of the War Department to General Taylor. 



CHAPTER III. 

Administration of Herrera — Intrigues of the Monarchists — Condition 
of the Public Funds — Arrival of Mr. Slidell — Refusal of Herrera 
to receive the Envoy — Revolt of General Paredes — Resignation 
of the President — Paredes assumes the supreme Power — Return 
of the American Envoy — Yucatan — Army of Occupation — Gene- 
eral Taylor marches to the Rio Bravo — Commencement of Hos- 
tilities — Capture of Captain Thornton's Command — Siege of Fort 
Brown — Battles of Palo Alto and Resaca de la Palma — Retreat 
of the Mexicans — Occupation of Matamoras by the American 
Forces. 

Don JoAauiN de Herrera, the President, ad interim, of 
the southern confederacy, was a very honest man, a sin- 
cere patriot, but a bad administrator. The virtues which 
adorned his character as a man were, under the peculiar 
circumstances he was placed in, an injury to him as the 
chief of a turbulent, unsettled people, who were morally 
incapable of discriminating between the good and evil 
tendencies of the present and past administrations ; the 
difference which existed in the mild policy of Herrera, and 
the iron despotism of his immediate predecessor, instead 
of rejoicing the hearts of his countrymen, produced a 
feeling of an entirely opposite nature. His love of peace, 
which, like its own snoxAy emblem, was an assurance of 
safety, was contemned as timidity, and his conciliatory 
conduct toward his rivals, as the cunning manoeuvre of a 
feeble statesman to gain popularity, by being merciful to 
his worst enemies, when his interest taught him to punish 
(334) 



INTRIGUES AGAINST HERRERA. 335 

them with death or imprisonment. Even the leaders of 
the revolution which had placed him at the head of the 
nation became dissatisfied with what they termed his 
apathy, and turned their influence against him. Paredes, 
Ampudia, Cuevas, Tornel, and the other distinguished 
partisans, who had once been his friends, now deserted 
him, and obeying their natural inclinations, or yielding to 
the arguments of the enemies of the state, arrayed them- 
selves in the ranks of the monarchists, who, having rid 
the country of Santa Anna, the most formidable impedi- 
ment which had opposed their advance toward the con- 
summation of their iniquitous schemes, were rapidly con- 
centrating their energies for the fatal blow which they 
hoped would forever crush the republican system, and 
restore the country to the Lord's anointed ! These mis- 
creants, encouraged by the primate of the Mexican 
Church, insidiously undermined the supreme authority, 
and sowed with liberal hands the pernicious seeds of 
discontent, which they dreamed M^ould grow into the 
monstrous shape their fancies had pictured. The weak 
point in Herrera's policy, in the opinion of his political 
adversaries, was his acknowledged desire to avoid, if pos- 
sible, a rupture with the United States. It was against 
this pacific disposition that Paredes and his associates 
caviled; asserting that the Executive did not intend to 
avenge the wrongs of Mexico, but to allow the enemy to 
dismember her territory without making an effort to resist 
the usurpation. The machinations of one perfidious 
friend are more to be feared than a host of open and 
avowed enemies, because we never feel the blow until 
the weapon enters our hearts. Relying upon the friend- 
ship of Paredes, the President had given him command 
of the army which was cantoned at San Luis Potosi. 
Enjoying the confidence of the soldiery, that General suc- 
ceeded without difficulty in enlisting them in his designs 
against the government. 



336 ARRIVAL OF MR. SLIDELL. 

The financial affairs of the republic had not im- 
proved during the administration of Herrera, nor was 
there the slightest hope that this important branch of 
the public service would improve under the exorbitant 
revenue system which then existed, paralyzing commerce 
without stimulating domestic industry. In vain the min- 
isters endeavored to extricate themselves from the diffi- 
culties which beset them upon all sides; each day brought 
with its light some new disaster which threatened to over- 
turn the existing dynasty, and involve them in its ruin. 

Such was the condition of things at the capital of 
Mexico when the American envoy appeared upon the 
scene. Mr. Slidell landed at Vera Cruz on the 30th of 
November, 1845, and was courteously received by the 
authorities of that city, and left for the interior with 
every expectation of being able to bring his important 
and delicate mission to a favorable issue. But Provi- 
dence had ordained otherwise. When he arrived at the 
seat of government, the plenipotentiary discovered that 
he had come either too soon or too late to achieve his 
purpose. The departments of the different branches of 
government were in the utmost confusion, and the Execu- 
tive and his cabinet seemed like men who were acting in 
obedience to some irresistible power against their own 
will. 

The political opponents of Herrera denounced him to 
the people as a traitor to his country for persisting to nego- 
tiate with the Americans, whose troops they averred had 
already entered the territory of the republic, and were then 
encamped upon the frontiers preparing at "one fell swoop" 
to ravage and destroy the northern provinces. The army 
under Paredes, which afterwards refused to march into 
Texas, echoed the denunciatory cry, and it was evident 
that the administration was near its end. Mr. Slidell, 
however, presented his credentials to the authorities, who 
if really desirous of avoiding a collision with the States, 



PAREDES ASSUMES SUPREME POWER. 337 

were obliged to conceal it. On the 21st of December, 
Don Manuel de la Pena, the Secretary of State, informed' 
the envoy that his government could not receive him under 
the existing circumstances; the reasons assigned for this- 
unexpected refusal, were neither important nor conclusive,, 
and the act could only be extenuated by the dangerous 
position in which the latter was placed. Paredes and his 
faction had pronounced against the President, who, deter- 
mined to abstain from shedding blood, yielded to the de- 
mands of the military, and resigned his office, as chief of 
the republic, on the 30th of December, to the great regret 
of that portion of the people who were capable of appre- 
ciating his many high and noble qualities. 

Paredes was immediately called upon by his partisans 
to assume the vacant dignity, he responded by publishing 
his plan for the reorganization of the government, and on. 
the 3d of January, 1846, complied with the dictates of his 
own selfish ambition, and the desire of his followers, by 
accepting the proffered honor, A good soldier, and a man' 
of no inconsiderable talents, the new Executive was in 
most respects the opposite to his predecessor; having 
reached the eminence upon which he stood by the bayo- 
nets of his soldiery he determined to maintain his position 
by the same means ; and the nation soon discovered that 
if the administration of Herrera had been too weak and' 
inefficient, that of his successor was too strong and' despotic 
to meet their approbation. 

In the meantime the United States Senate had ratified 
the annexation resolutions on the 29th of December, 1845, 
and Texas was formally admitted into the confederacy as 
one of the sovereign states. After the passage of this act 
of Congress, it became the imperative duty of the Ameri- 
can government to bring the questions in dispute with 
Mexico to a speedy and final adjustment. The late revo- 
lution in that country had entirely changed the aspect of 
things. Paredes had subverted the constitution and had 
22 



338 NOTE OF THE MEXICAN MINISTER. 

established a form of government upon a new and widely 
different plan ; the refusal of Herrera to receive Mr. Slidell 
could therefore have no influence in retarding the progress 
of his mission, if the authorities of Mexico were disposed 
to negotiate. 

Viewing the subject in this light, the President of the 
United States, in the true spirit of a pacificator, instructed 
the envoy to renew his application to be received as a 
plenipotentiary from the States. In obedience to the or- 
ders of the Executive, Mr. Slidell presented his credentials 
2and asked to be formally recognized as a resident minister, 
•t)n the 1st of March, 1846, two months having elapsed 
tsince his former effort to obtain the same acknowledg- 
iment from Herrera. The government of Mexico being 
firmly resolved to maintain what it deemed the " most 
just of causes, at all hazards, and not to suffer the nation 
to be despoiled of itg territories," was actively engaged in 
making preparations for war; at the same time being 
■desirous of preventing the effusion of Mexican blood, if it 
could be done consistently with the honor and dignity of 
the republic, and by decorous and formal negotiations, an- 
nounced its willingness, through the Secretary, Castillo y 
Lanzas, to hear what the envoy had to communicate.* On 
the 12th of March, Mr. Slidell received a reply to his note 
of the 1st inst., in which the Mexican minister denounced 
the course pursued by the States, as opposed to every 
principle of truth and justice. "Civilized nations," said 
he, "have beheld with amazement, at this enlightened and 
refined epoch, a powerful and vi'^ell-consolidated State, 
availing herself of the internal dissensions of a neighboring 
nation, putting its vigilance to sleep by protestations of 
friendship, setting in motion all manner of springs, traps, 
and artifices, alternately plying intrigue and violence. 



* Message of President Paredes to the Mexican Congress, June 1st, 
1846. 



MR. SLIDELL RETIRES TO JALAPA. 339 

seizing a favorable moment to despoil her of a precious 
part of her territory, regardless of her incontestable right 
of the most unquestionable ownership, and the most 
undisputed possession.'^ The Secretary, Lanzas, closed 
this insolent and mendacious document by peremptorily 
refusing to receive the American envoy in any other 
capacity than that of a minister ad hoc, empowered to 
treat of special business.* Mr. Slidell immediately de- 
manded his passports, and, retiring to the city of Jalapa, 
remained there until his departure from the country. 

The government of Mexico was guilty of a flagrant 
breach of faith in refusing to recognize the envoy, accord- 
ing to the previous agreement of October, 1845 ; and as it 
was in consideration of this engagement of his predeces- 
sor that Paredes consented to renew the negotiation,f the 
refusal of that personage to fulfill the promise of Herrera 
admits of no palliation ; for if the latter's official acts 
were binding at all upon his successor, they were so to 
the utmost extent. According to his own admission, the 
Executive of Mexico had no right to reject Slidell as a 
resident minister, if he chose to prefer his claims to that 
responsible dignity. The great error in this affair, if there 
was one, was the persistence of the American govern- 
ment in attempting to force an envoy upon the govern- 
ment of the southern republic, against its avowed incli- 
nation. It would, however, have ill become a nation like 
the United States to have yielded, even in this apparently 
unimportant particular; had it done so, Mexico would 
have construed her condescension into timidity — her 
pacific overtures into a desire of avoiding an open rup- 
ture in order to continue her aggressions, as that power 
was pleased to denominate the annexation of Texas to 
the American Union. Those who are familiar with the 



* Vide the correspondence between the United States' Minister and 
the Mexican Secretary of Foreign Relations, March, 1846. 
f Paredes' Message to Congress. 



340 YUCATAN REFUSES AID TO MEXICO. 

character of this people, know that of all others they are 
prone to suspect the intentions of strangers — a morbid 
feeling generated by the anomalous condition of their 
country, which, nominally free, is governed by spiritual 
and temporal despots, who have destroyed not only their 
civil liberty, but have perverted the national mind, until 
all distinction between right and wrong seems to have 
been entirely obliterated.* 

The States were not alone in having just cause of 
quarrel with Mexico ; the State of Yucatan had never 
been able to obtain satisfaction for the injmies her citi- 
zens had sustained from the general government during 
Santa Anna's administration, although her commissioners 
had repeatedly addressed his successors in office upon the 
subject. In the latter part of January, the Secretary 
Lanzas, received the memorial of the envoys in a most 
gracious manner. A correspondence ensued, in wliich 
Lanzas promised redress, but failed to do any thing ; his 
only object being to conciliate the deputies, in expectation 
of securing the assistance of Yucatan in case hostilities 
should break out between Mexico and the northern con- 
federacy. On the 7th of Mai'ch, Tornel, who again pre- 
sided over the bm^eau of war and marine, made a requisi- 
tion upon the peninsula for a division of native troops to 
defend the castle and batteries of Vera Cruz. This de- 
mand was very properly denied by the provincial author- 
ities, who, outraged by the presumptuous conduct of the 
administration, firmly refused to take any part in the 
anticipated struggle with the States. Alarmed at this 
declaration, Paredes dispatched a diplomatic agent to 
Merida with liberal offers of accommodation ; the govern- 
ment of the department reiterated their determination to 

* In confirmation of this, the reader need only examine the works 
of those who have travelled in Mexico, since she has become an inde- 
pendent state. 



PASSAGE OF THE COLORADO. 341 

remain neutral, and the Mexican envoy returned home 
without having effected the object of his mission. 

On the 11th of March, 1846, General Taylor, in obedi- 
ence to the orders of the President, broke up his camp at 
Corpus Christi and advanced toward the Rio Grande. As 
the troops under his command had been reinforced, during 
the winter, by an additional body of infantry, several 
companies of artillery, and a division of cavalry, the 
General approached the Mexican frontier with confidence. 

On the 19th the advanced guard of the army encamped 
within three miles of the Arroyo Colorado, an extensive 
lagoon running up from the sea ; it is more than ninety 
yards broad, and barely fordable at the point selected for 
the passage of the forces. A reconnoitering party was 
immediately sent forward to examine the ford. A strong 
body of Ranchero cavalry were seen on the opposite bank, 
who announced to the officer in command of the detach- 
ment that it would be considered an act of hostility should 
the American troops attempt to cross the water, and that 
they should {)e treated as enemies, if they persisted in 
doing so. On the following morning General Taylor pre- 
pared to force a passage, should resistance be offered to 
his progress. The first brigade of infantry and the cavalry 
were posted near the ford, while the artillery was placed 
so as to rake the opposite shore. The Mexicans again 
made their appearance, and Captain Mansfield was dis- 
patched to confer with their leader, who informed that 
officer that he had peremptory orders to fire upon the army 
if an attempt was made to cross the stream. The Adjutant 
General of the Mexican forces now crossed the river with 
an escort, and repeated to the commander-in-chief a simi- 
lar warning. The latter replied that he should cross the 
water immediately, " and if any of his party showed them- 
selves, after the passage had commenced, they would re- 
ceive the fire of the artillery." Orders were then issued 
for the different corps to advance. Not a gun was fired ; 



342 GENERAL TAYLOR REACHES POINT ISABEL. 

General Worth plunged into the stream at the head of his 
division, and as they reached the opposite bank, the Mexi- 
cans had disappeared, having retreated in the direction of 
Matamoras. 

On the 23d of March, the General reached Point Isabel 
on the coast; while marching tow^ard that place he was 
met by a civil deputation from the city, on the other side 
of the Rio Grande, who desired an interview with him. 
The Mexicans proceeded with the troops some distance, 
but finally refused to go any farther, at the same time 
handing Taylor a formal protest, issued by the prefect of 
the northern district of Tamaulipas, against the occupation 
of the country by the troops of the United States. While 
the parties were conferring, a dense column of smoke was 
seen rising in the direction of the Gulf; the enemy had set 
fii'e to the buildings at Point Isabel, to prevent the army 
from using them. The General then told the deputation 
that he would answer the protest when he encamped op- 
posite Matamoras, and dismissed them. Resuming their 
march, the columns reached the coast that evening without 
further interruption.* The army remained at the mouth 
of the Del Norte for a few days, erecting defences, and 
preparing suitable places for the reception of public stores 
and munitions. Colonel Thomas was placed in charge of 
the post which was garrisoned witli a small number of 
men. Having secured an outlet to the Gulf, the comman- 
der-in-chief advanced up the river, with the main body of 
his forces, and encamped opposite the crossing place of 
Paso Real, in full view of the city of Matamoras. Without 
delay the American commander began to erect field-works 
in order to strengthen his position, as he had already done, 
thirty miles distant, near the outlet, called the Brazos Santi- 
ago,! where he established a depot of supplies and muni- 

* General Taylor's Dispatches to the War Department, March 3 1st 
and 25th, 1846. 

j Arm of St. James. 



CAPTURE OF CAPTAIN THORNTON. 343 

tions of war. With an apathy perfectly incomprehensible 
under the circumstances, the Mexicans beheld these pre- 
parations without making an effort to prevent their pro- 
gress. A few days of unremitting labor sufficed to complete 
a strong and well constructed fortress, which overlooked 
the city of Matamoras. 

It was not until the 12th of April that the people on the 
opposite shore seemed to awake from their lethargy, and 
to perceive the advantage the Americans had derived from 
their supineness. On that day General Pedro de Ampudia 
formally announced to General Taylor that if he did not 
break up his camp, and retire beyond the Nueces, within 
twenty-four hours, that arms and arms alone must decide 
the contest. The reply to this demand was a peremptory 
refusal, and a declaration to the effect that the American 
flag would continue to float on the shores of the Rio Grande 
until " eternity." The General in command qualified his 
refusal by offering to sign an armistice, which should be 
maintained until the parties should receive instructions 
from their respective governments. Ampudia refused to 
accede to this reasonable proposition, and proclaiming his 
intention of resorting to force, prepared to make good his 
threats. Shortly afterwards General Mariano xlrista, the 
commander-in-chief of the northern division of the Mexican 
army arrived at Matamoras, and on the 24th inst., ad- 
dressed a communication to General Taylor, informing 
him that " he considered hostilities commenced and should 
prosecute them." 

On the same day Captain Thornton, with a party of 
dragoons, sixty-three in number, rank and file, were sent 
up the left bank of the river to reconnoitre and ascertain 
whether the enemy had crossed, or "were preparing to cross, 
the stream. While performing this duty the detachment, 
on the morning of the 25th, encountered a division of Mexi- 
cans, two hundred in number, under the command of Gene- 
ral Torrejon. Forming his squadron, Thornton, though 



344 REQUISITION OF GENERAL TAYLOR. 

surprised in a disadvantageous position, charged upon the 
enemy, whose great superiority enabled them to resist the 
onset with such success that the party were compelled to 
surrender prisoners of war, after having sustained a loss of 
sixteen killed and wounded in the gallant effort to extri- 
cate themselves. 

On the 26th of April, General Taylor made a requisition 
upon the States of Texas and Louisiana for eight regiments 
of volunteers, each state being called upon to furnish four 
regiments. The demand was responded to with enthusiasm; 
the Governors and legislative bodies emulating each other 
in their eagerness to muster and equip the desired levies 
within the shortest possible time. Major General Gaines, 
commanding the western division of the U. S. army, ac- 
tively co-operated with the civil authorities in raising, 
organizing, and transporting the Louisiana troops to the 
seat of war. The whole force under General Taylor at 
this crisis, cavalry, infantry, and artillery, did not exceed 
three thousand men ; as it was evident that the enemy 
would soon make good their threats by invading the 
American side of the river, it became necessary for the 
commander to act with great circumspection. The defen- 
ces which had been erected after an approved fashion, under 
his own eye, were, in his opinion, strong enovigh to bid de- 
fiance to the assaults of the hostiles should the}^ attempt 
to carry the place ; an enterprise scarcely to be expected 
from even the veterans under Arista. In order, however, 
to put the fort in a condition to sustain a siege, it was ne- 
cessary to obtain a supply of provisions, the commissariat 
.having already been drawn upon to its fullest extent. 

On the 1st of May, Gen. Taylor left his position oppo- 
,site Matamoras, and with the main body of his forces 
marched toward Point Isabel, near the mouth of the Del 
Norte, where, as has been stated, he had established a depot 
•of arms and subsistence. Contrary to his expectations, 
ihe reached his destination on the following day, without 



DEFENCE OF THE FORT. 345 

meeting a single adversary. The works were garrisoned 
by the 7th infantry and two companies of artillery, under 
the command of Major Brown. The Mexicans had fortified 
the bank of the river by erecting batteries, in a line with 
the fort, which frowned upon the adverse shore. 

About day-break on the morning of the 3d, the garrison 
was aroused by the deafening peal of the hostile ordnance ; 
which echoed along the windings of the stream, proclaiming 
that the Aztec eagle was about to encounter the bird of the 
north, in whose capacious maw lay buried the fair province 
protected by its outspread wings. The fire was promptly 
returned by the Americans, whose superior skill in the use 
of their guns enabled them to do infinite damage to the 
enemy. The bombardment continued several days, both 
parties toiling incessantly at the engines of death. Gene- 
ral Arista, in the meantime having completed his prepara- 
tions, crossed the Rio Grande at the head of five thousand 
regular troops, and one thousand auxiliaries, supported by 
a train of more than twelve pieces of cannon.* Arista 
encamped at the Tonquas del Ramireno, in rear of the fort, 
and on the 6th summoned it to surrender, threatening to 
storm it, and exterminate its defenders, unless his demand 
was complied with, allowing them one hour for delibera- 
tion. As a matter of form, a council of war was called, 
which decided unanimously in the negative upon the pro- 
posals of the Mexican leader. The latter, as if determined 
to carry his threats into execution, turned his arms against 
the works, thus placing the garrison between two fires. 
Encouraging their men by their cheerful and intrepid bear- 
ing, the officers of the division plied the guns day and 
night, and with the energy of men in desperate circum- 
stances labored to finish the defences. They even cut up 
their tents and fashioned them into sand-bags, which were 
placed so as to receive the enemy's fire. The siege had 

* Arista's Dispatch to the Minister of War and Marine. 



346 THE TEXAN RANGERS. 

continued several days, the Americans had as yet lost but 
one man, who, strange to say, had &st been wounded 
badly, and placed for safety in a casemate, when a shot 
striking him upon the head instantly killed him ! 

On the morning of the 8th of May, 1846, the Mexican 
scouts reported the advance of the forces under Taylor, ac- 
companied by a heavy train of wagons, loaded with supplies. 
Upon the reception of this intelligence Arista marched 
toward the coast, leaving his second in command, Don 
Pedro Ampudia, in charge of the detachment which had 
been ordered to keep the garrison from attempting a junc- 
tion with the main body. At one o'clock, P. M., Arista ar- 
rived near the water-hole of Palo Alto, and formed his line 
of battle in an extensive plain, with his right wing resting 
upon a woody elevation ; his left was supported by a quag- 
mire, very difficult of penetration. The cavalry, which 
composed one-third of his army, was placed upon the 
flanks of the line thus strongly posted. Twelve pieces of 
ordnance occupied the intervals between the cavalry and 
infantry. General Taylor's first impulse, when he heard 
the cannonading at the fort, was to retrace his steps with- 
out delay ; but as the guns of the besieged continued to be 
heard in answer to those of the assailants, he relied with 
confidence upon the gallantry of the former, and resolved 
to complete his preparations. In order, however, to obtain 
some definite information of the actual condition of the 
party in charge of the works, he dispatched Captain Walk- 
er of the Texan Rangers up the river for that purpose. 
Walker returned on the 5th, and reported that there was 
scarcely a probability of the Mexicans being able to reduce 
the fort ; stating at the same time that the country between 
the two places was alive with the enemy's cavalry, through 
which he and his men had with difiiculty made their w^ay 
unobserved. The gallant conduct of this officer contribu- 
ted in no slight degree to relieve the feelings of the different 
divisions, as it destroyed that sickening uncertainty which 



MARCH TO FORT BROWN. 347 

is common to those engetged in operations at a distance 
from one another. 

On the evening of the 7th, the American commander 
took up the line of march for his former camp, at the head 
of two thousand three hundred men, cavalry, infantry, and 
artillery ; the army was encumbered with a heavy train of 
wagons, which somewhat retarded its progress. That 
night Taylor bivouacked seven miles from Point Isabel, and 
on the following morning resumed his march. About the 
hour of noon, on the memorable 8th, the advance squad- 
rons of horse which had been thrown forward, reached the 
Palo Alto, and discovered the enemy drawn up in battle 
array upon the prairie, three quarters of a mile distant. 
In a short time the main body came up and the General 
ordered a halt, that the men might refresh themselves at 
the pool. After resting an hour or so, the American com- 
mander proceeded deliberately to form his line of battle as 
follows, commencing on the right wing: " Fifth infantry, 
Colonel Mcintosh; Ringgold's artillery; third infantry, Cap- 
tain Morris; two eighteen pounders. Lieutenant Churchill; 
fourth infantry, Major Allen ; two squadrons of dragoons 
under Captains Ker and May The left wing was formed 
of a battalion of artillery. Colonel Childs ; Captain Dun- 
can's light artillery; and the eighth infantry, Captain Mont- 
gomery. Colonel Twiggs commanded the right, and Lieu- 
tenant Colonel Belknap the left of the line." * The train 
was packed in the rear, protected by a sufficient guard. 

At two o'clock the order was given to move forward, 
the several corps advancing steadily by heads of columns, 
the eighteen pounders keeping the road. Lieutenant 
Blake, of the topographical engineers, having performed a 
skilful reconnoissance of the hostile line, now reported the 
position of the enemy's batteries. As the columns came 

♦General Taylor's Dispatches, May 15th, 1846. 



348 BATTLE OF PALO ALTO. 

up the Mexican cannon opened upon them a deafening 
but harmless fire* 

Halting his divisions, Taylor ordered them to deploy 
into line, an evolution M^hich they performed with as 
much coolness as if they had been upon parade ; throw- 
ing back the 8th infantry to secure his left flank, the 
General placed the light battery in advance ; the word 
was then given to return the adversaries' fire : it was 
promptly obeyed ; the eighteen pounders, and Ringgold's 
admirable corps of flying artillery, poured forth a deadly 
stream of shot, which soon forced the cavalry on Arista's 
left to fall back. 

At this moment Duncan's battery, supported by May's 
dragoons, was doing equal damage on the right flank. In 
order to prevent the destruction of his army. Arista deter- 
mined to make an effort to silence the fatal engines which 
were so rapidly vomiting death into his ranks. The 
greater part of the Mexican cavalry had been posted 
upon their left ; they were mostly lancers, and were 
commanded by General Anastasio Torrejon, the officer 
who had captured Thornton's party during the preceding 
month. While the American ordnance Avas sweeping 
down his files. Arista ordered Torrejon to charge upon 
Taylor's right, while he in person proposed to advance 
with the rest of his lancers and the main body of his 
infantry, upon his left flank. Torrejon, supported by two 
field-pieces, attempted to obey the order, but was met and 
repulsed by the 5th infantry, Walker's volunteers, and a 
section of flying artillery under Lieutenant Ridgely, which 
raked the lancers as they retired, after this bold, but 
unsuccessful movement. The General, anticipating a 
renewal of the attack, now strengtliened that part of his 
line with the 3d infantry. The long grass of the prairie 

* General Ampudia arrived upon the scene at this moment, and be- 
haved well during the day. 



BATTLE OF PALO ALTO. 349 

was at this crisis accidentally set on fire, which being as 
dry as powder, blazed up fiercely, and for the space of an 
hour the combatants were partially hidden from each 
other by the dense volumes of smoke, which hung like 
a curtain between them, for the time at least preventing 
the work of death. 

Advancing under cover of the smoke, the American 
forces now occupied the position lately held by the 
lancers near the quagmire. When the enemy's line 
again became visible, the contest was resumed with 
increased ardor, the eighteen pounders, flying artillery, 
and light battery, making fearful havoc through the 
ranlis of the Mexicans, whose intrepid bearing was the 
"theme of universal admiration" among those who wit- 
nessed their gallant behavior. The blood of both armies 
had now become heated ; volley followed volley in rapid 
succession; the air was filled with musket balls, round 
shot, grape, and canister. May's squadron being ordered 
to make a demonstration upon the enemy's flank, was 
driven back with loss upon the main body. Maddened 
with pain and excitement, the Mexican soldiery called 
out to their General either to advance or retreat, so 
that the battle might be lost or won, and not prolonged 
until the artillery had entirely destroyed them.* Arista, 
in the hope of quieting the impatience of his men, who 
were leaving their ranks, sent forward a division of 
lancers, under Colonel Cayetano Montero, to attack the 
right wing, from whence issued the most destructive 
fire. The cavalry were met by a battalion of artillery, 
which, forming in square, received them with the bayo- 
net; at the same moment the eighteen pounders opened 
a deadly discharge of canister, Avhich forced the former 
to retire in disorder beyond the reach of the cannon. 
Their retreat was covered by a sharp fire of musketry 

* Arista's Dispatch to Tornel, May the 8th, 11 P. M., 1846. 



350 LOSS OF THE RESPECTIVE FORCES. 

from the Mexican lines ; a few rounds from the ord- 
nance soon silenced even this feeble effort upon the 
part of Arista to maintain his position. The Mexicans 
were driven back in the same manner upon their right 
by the 8th infantry, Ker's dragoons, and Duncan's artil- 
lery. The shadows of night were now gathering upon 
the field, the roar of the battle, the fierce shouts, and 
the clash of arms gradually ceased; and as the stars 
came forth and mingled their radiance with the light 
of the waning moon, the groans of the wounded and 
dying were borne upon the wind, and filled the air with 
mournful sounds. 

The enemy, driven from his position, had retired a short 
distance to the rear, and occupied the chapparal with 
his shattered battalions, having lost in killed, wounded, 
and missing, five hundred men. The American force ac- 
tually engaged during the day, was two thousand two 
hundred and eighty-eight men, who lost nine killed, fifty- 
four wounded, and two missing. Among those mortally 
wounded was Major Ringgold, one of the bravest and most 
meritorious officers in the service. The number of shot 
thrown during the day, according to Arista's account, from 
the American cannon, was over three thousand, while the 
Mexicans fired but six hundred and fifty rounds from their 
twelve pieces used in the action. 

The weary soldiers, exhausted with their bloody M'ork, 
bivouacked upon the field, and throwing themselves on 
the ground, reposed upon their arms until morning, lulled 
to sleep by the melancholy howl of troops of wolves, which 
scenting the carnage afar off, approached the fatal spot. 

" From camp to camp, through the foul womb of night 
The hum of either army stilly sounds, 
That the fixed sentinels almost receive 
The secret whispers of each other's watch ; 
Fire answers fire ; and through their paly flames 



CHARGE OF CAPTAIN MAY. 351 

Each battle sees the other's umber'd face ; 

Steed threatens steed in high and boastful neigh 

Piercing the night's dull ear." 

At the dawn of day on the following morning, the 
Mexican army was descried retreating through the wood 
toward the Del Norte, following the road to Matamoras. 
Sending his wounded back to Point Isabel, and leaving a de- 
tachment, with four pieces of artillery, to guard the supply 
train at Palo Alto, the commander-in-chief ordered his co- 
lumns to advance in pursuit of the enemy; at the same time 
throwing forward a strong party, with instructions to ex- 
plore the chapparal and ascertain the position of the Mexi- 
can force. At three in the afternoon Taylor received infor- 
mation that Arista was posted directly in front on the road, 
which was intersected at that point by a ravine, which M^as 
skirted by dense thickets of undergrowth. The flying 
artillery, under Lieutenant Ridgely, advanced up the 
road, covered by several regiments of infantry, which 
were extended into the woods upon the right and left 
flanks ; the cavalry was held in reserve, together with 
the 8th infantry, in the rear. Pushing onward through 
the chapparal, the divisions soon came within range of 
the hostile cannon. About four o'clock the action com- 
menced, the enemy opening a vigorous fire from eight 
pieces of artillery, which commanded the pass. The fire 
was returned with equal energy, and in a few moments 
the engagement became general ; the infantry, upon the 
wings, and the battery in the centre, pouring in volley 
after volley, in rapid succession, which told fearfully 
among the serried ranks in front, who, unable to bear 
the shock, were forced to retire behind their guns. 

The Mexican cannon, under the charge of Generals 
La Vega and Requena, was well served, and kept up an 
incessant discharge upon the advancing columns, which 
had already suffered considerably. It became necessary, 



352 CAPTURE OF THE MEXICAN BATTERY. 

therefore, to silence them, at all hazards, and Captain 
May was ordered to charge the battery with his squadron 
of cavalry, a perilous, and difficult feat, which was, never- 
theless, successfully performed, the Mexicans retiring 
before the impetuous onset of the horsemen ; the guns 
were silenced, and General La Vega, who had remained 
at his post, was taken prisoner. Not being supported 
by the infantry, May did not retain possession of the 
guns, but fell back upon the main body. The 8th in- 
fantry, which had been held as a corps de reserve, had 
been ordered up, and was now hotly engaged with the 
prolongation of the Mexican left, on the right of the 
road ; being reinforced by a part of the 5th, the division 
was now ordered to charge the batteries with the bayo- 
net, which was executed with admirable coolness and 
courage, the Mexicans retreating, leaving their artillery 
behind, in their haste to escape from the forest of steel 
which threatened to pierce their ranks. While rushing 
on to the hostile line, several wounded Mexicans were 
seen lying in their path, who called out to them, in the 
extremity of despair, for water ; in an instant the poor 
wretches were deluged with the grateful element, every 
soldier within hearing placing the contents of his canteen 
and haversack at their disposal. In the meantime, the 
4th infantry, in conjunction with the light companies of 
the first brigade, and the 3d regiment, which had deployed 
into the wood on the right, were busily engaged with 
Arista's veterans, who resisted the efforts made to dis- 
lodge them, for a considerable time, with success. In 
several parts of the field the adversaries fought hand to 
hand, each determined, if possible, to maintain their 
ground. A party of the 4th regiment having captured a 
battery of one piece posted upon the right of the road, 
Arista sent a strong division to recover it ; they were met 
by a company under Captain Barbour, who, after a brief 



FLIGHT OF THE MEXICANS. 353 

struggle, repelled them with loss.* This was the last 
effort made by the Mexican leader to regain his lost 
gromid. Driven from his position upon both wings, and 
in the centre, his broken columns, unable to bear the fire 
which, with untiring energy was poured into their lines, 
lost all hope, and retreated precipitately from the field, 
leaving even the meagre repast then preparing in their 
camp to be eaten by the Americans, The rear guard, 
which had been left in charge of the baggage train, was 
immediately ordered up in pursuit of the flying foe, who 
had taken the road to Matamoras, followed by a squad- 
ron of dragoons and the other corps ; they fled rapidly, 
many of their number yielding themselves prisoners of 
war. In passing the walls of the fort, which, three days 
before, he had so arrogantly summoned to surrender, 
Arista was saluted by a discharge from the guns of the 

* The following interesting account of the capture of this piece of 
ordnance is extracted from a detailed description of the actions of the 
8th and 9th of May, which was written by the late gallant and unfor- 
tunate Lieutenant John A. Richey, of the 4th regiment United States 
infantry : " A short time after the battle began several of us became 
separated from our command in the brush, and started forward with the 
few men we could collect at the moment to take a battery of the Mexi- 
cans that was blazing away at us. We dashed forward into the ravine, 
across the stream which ran through it, and, clambering up the opposite 
bank, rushed across the openings of the chapparal toward the battery. 
While passing through the woods I got separated for about ten minutes 
from Lieutenants Woods and Hays; when I rejoined them they had cap- 
tured the cannon ; they had dashed onward upon the enemy attended by 
only one man! The cannoneers immediately turned and fled; before 
doing so they had set fire to the priming tube, the gun being loaded ; 
the match was burning slowly, and was about to ignite the powder, 
when Lieutenant Woods knocked the priming off with his sword. In the 
meantime some Mexicans ran to the mules, attached to the piece by a 
long pole, and endeavored to drag it off; Hays perceiving their inten- 
tion, sprang forward, and snapped his pistol at them; at the same mo- 
ment Woods caught hold of the driving reins, and turned the mules 
round toward the gun. By this time our party was reinforced, and 
moved forward along the road, firing all the time, and driving the enemy 
23 



354 NUMBER OF THE RESPECTIVE FORCES. 

garrison, which caused his panic-stricken troops to rush 
heedlessly forward. In their eagerness to escape, hun- 
dreds of the poor fellows found a last resting-place beneath 
the turbid waters of the Rio Bravo. 

The American army encamped for the night on the 
hard-won field of battle, a favor purchased with the lives 
of many brave and gallant men. The marching force 
under General Taylor on the 9th, was not more than 
two thousand two hundred and twenty-two, rank and 
file. The number of troops actually engaged was about 
seventeen hundred.* The American loss was three offi- 
cers killed and twelve wounded ; thirty-six privates killed 
and seventy-one wounded. The Mexican army was esti- 
mated at six thousand men. Arista having called in the 
parties of cavalry and infantry which had been posted 
between the Palo Alto and the fort opposite Matamoras, 

before us. We proceeded on in this way with about twenty men. 
Woods now separated from us, and we were joined by Lieutenants 
Augur and Cochrane, both of the 4th. Our little party was composed 
of men belonging to every regiment in the army. We advanced a great 
distance in front of the main body, and were surrounded on all sides by 
the Mexicans, who were firing in every direction at other bodies ot 
troops. At this instant a large party of lancers came charging down 
upon us; some of our guns were loaded, some were not; our bayonets 
were unfixed. We ordered our men to retreat. As we were falling 
back we saw a small detachment, under the command of Captain Bar- 
bour, coming up ; we shouted to him to come quickly, and hurried down 
to meet him. We reached him, and turned oif into a little opening, and 
faced the road. As the lancers charged past us, we fired, and killed 
several of them ; the rest ran away, and were again fired upon by us. 
A great many gallant deeds were performed on this day by the ofiicers 
and men. Lieutenant Cochrane was killed in the charge of the lancers 
.upon our party ; he received three severe wounds." Lieutenant Richey 
was himself much exposed during the day, and behaved in such a man- 
ner as to merit the approbation of his superiors in rank, and the esteem 
of his numerous friends in the army. He has been described by a 
brother officer as a "mild, modest, unassuming young man, but a lion 
in battle." 

* General Taylor's Dispatch, May 17th, 1816. 



BRAVE CONDUCT OF THE MEXICANS. 357 

a few hours before his last desperate stand at Resaca de 
la Palma. The Mexican loss in killed was certainly two 
hundred, as that number was left upon the field ; his 
wounded was double that number, making an aggregate 
loss in both battles, if we include the missing and prison- 
ers, of more than twelve hundred men. In the Mexican 
camp were found a large quantity of baggage and military 
stores, several hundred pack mules, and General Arista's 
private effects ; among which was discovered his official 
correspondence with his government, a number of plans, 
maps, and other documents of importance, — the enemy, in 
their eagerness to save themselves, had, in fact, left every 
thing behind them.* The number of prisoners captured 
was one hundred and seventy, including fourteen officers. 
The courage with which the Mexicans fought in both 
actions was worthy of the days of chivalry, and redeemed 
the reputation of the whole nation. One division particu- 
larly distinguished itself; this was the battalion of Tam- 
pico, a corps which resisted the advance of the adverse line 
in the face of a galling fire, nor yielded a foot of ground 
until nearly every man was cut down, or swept away by 
the murderous discharge of the artillery. f On the morn- 
ing of the 10th of May, the victors gathered up the enemy's 
dead and deposited them, with the remains of their own 

* A magnificent pavilion and several pieces of massive plate were 
among the articles. Arista's wardrobe and personal effects were returned 
to him. 

j" The bravest men in the Mexican army were those who belonged to 
the Tampico battalion ; they stood the destructive fire of the artillery 
with remarkable firmness, and when the order was given for retreat, but 
fifty of them remained alive. A member of this gallant corps, anxious to 
preserve the honor of his battalion, tore the colors under which they fought 
from its staff, and concealed it about his person. As he was retreating, 
he was attacked by an American, who, after a desperate combat, killed 
the heroic Mexican and secured the trophy, now moistened with the blood 
of the bravest of its defenders. It is a fortunate circumstance that there 
are not many such spirits in the Mexican army. 



358 THE MEXICANS OFFER AN ARMISTICE. 

comrades, beneath the sod their united valor had conse- 
crated. The wounded of both armies were treated with 
equal care; they both received the same attention from 
the medical staff. The humanity displayed by the officers 
and men toward the vanquished adds much to their re- 
nown, and sheds a brighter ray of glory upon the victories 
of Palo Alto and Resaca de la Palma. 

The army, on the same day, moved forward and en- 
camped near the fort, which, in honor of its gallant com- 
mander, who had been wounded early in the siege and 
had died on the 9th, was called Fort Brown. The loss 
sustained by the garrison during the bombardment, was 
two killed and ten slightly wounded; such was the ad- 
mirable arrangement of the defences, that although the 
enemy were incessantly throwing round shot and shell into 
the works, they scarcely made an impression upon them. 
The enemy had five mortars posted on the opposite bank 
of the river, and it was estimated by the besieged that they 
threw, during the seven days occupied in attempting to 
reduce the fort, more than three thousand heavy missiles 
of various kinds. 

On the 17th, General Taylor having procured the ord- 
nance (two mortars) necessary to reduce the town of 
Matamoras, issued an order for crossing the river a short 
distance above. He had previously sent Lieutenant Colo- 
nel Wilson with a battalion of regulars and two hundred 
volunteers to the opposite side to make a diversion by the 
way of Burita, a small town between the coast and the 
city. As the army were preparing to pass the stream 
under cover of the fort. General Requena arrived in the 
camp and requested a conference, and proposed in the 
name of Arista, to sign an armistice until the respective 
governments should decide upon the questions at issue. 
The American commander peremptorily refused to treat 
upon the subject, inasmuch aa he had proposed a suspen- 
sion of hostilities a month before to General Ampudia, but 



EVACUATION OF MATAMORAS. 359 

that circumstances had changed since that time ; that he 
had received strong reinforcements, and that, as he had 
not begun or provoked the war, he would not no^v suspend 
his operations, but that Matamoras must be taken. At 
the same time, he informed Requena that General Arista 
was at perfect liberty to evacuate the town with his troops, 
provided he left the public property in the place. 

Requena thereupon withdrew, promising to return an 
answer during the afternoon. The expected reply never 
came, and that night Arista, who had still a force of be- 
tween three and four thousand troops of the line, besides 
a strong body of ranchero cavalry, fled from the town and 
took the road to Monterey. On the 18th, the army of 
occupation crossed the stream, and in a few minutes the 
stars and stripes were floating on the Mexican side of the 
Rio Grande. As its folds were flung to the breeze, a deaf- 
ening shout broke from the different corps, who now felt 
that the long-delayed hour of triumph had arrived. Lieu- 
tenant Colonel Garland was dispatched at the head of a 
division of cavalry in pursuit of the fugitive Mexicans ; 
this officer followed them about sixty miles, and returned 
on the 22d, after having captured a small party of the 
enemy. 

In its retreat to the interior, the fugitive army suffered: 
severely from hunger, thirst, and fatigue ; great numbers,, 
unable to bear these accumulated privations, deserted 
during the march, and returned to the Del Norte, or joined 
the partisan bands which infested the frontier. About the 
latter end of May, the fragments of Arista's once formid- 
able army reached the hacienda of Coma, a hundred miles 
distant from Matamoras, where he halted, to recruit the 
wasted energies of his men, who were completely demor- 
alized by their recent disasters, and incapable of farther 
exertion, from physical debility. In order to prevent all 
communication between the invaders and the interior of 
the country, the Mexican leader posted strong parties of 



360 TAYLOR'S ARMY REINFORCED. 

cavalry along the line. The authorities of the department, 
at the same time, issued a proclamation, forbidding the 
people to hold intercourse with the strangers, under severe 
penalties, and denouncing all who did so as traitors and 
enemies to the republic. In a few days, Arista resumed 
his march, and after much suffering reached the city of 
Monterey. 

On the 24th, the army under General Taylor was rein- 
forced by the first and second regiments of Louisiana 
volunteers, which enabled him to continue his operations 
with a greater probability of success. The inhabitants of 
Matamoras, in the suburbs of which the army was en- 
camped, gradually became accustomed to the sight of the 
uniform of the States, and neither cared nor wished for 
their departure, so long as their religion and civil liberty 
were left unimpaired, both of which were carefully re- 
spected by the commander-in-chief. 



CHAPTER IV. 

Law of the Convocation — Tyranny of Paredes — Condition of the pub- 
lic Treasury — The Government suspends Payment — The Clergy 
are called upon to assist the State — Reply of the Archbishop — Meet- 
ing of the Chapter — The opulence, number, and influence of the 
Mexican Clergy — Captain Fremont enters Upper California — His 
Reception — He is ordered to leave the Province — His Reply and 
Departure — Revolt of the Indians under Juan Alvarez — Insurrection 
of the garrisons of Mazatlan, Tepic, and San Bias — Liberty of the 
Press destroyed — Removal of Arista from the command of the Army 
— Blockade of Vera Cruz and the ports on the Pacific — Pronuncia- 
mento at Guadalaxara — Meeting of Congress — Progress of Revolt. 

While the American forces were mustering upon the 
Del Norte by squadrons, battalions and regiments, the 
interior of Mexico presented a scene — but too common in 
that country — of revolutionary turmoil and civil discord. 
The political scheme known as the plan of San Luis Po- 
tosi had abolished the former constitutions, and its author 
had no sooner assumed the supreme authority than he at 
once indicated in his policy the aristocratic tendency of 
his mind. Surrounded by such creatures as Castillo, Lan- 
zas, Alaman, Cuevas, his excellency Don Jose Tornel y 
Mendivil, and others of a higher grade, whose counsels 
were in consequence more dangerous to the state than the 
former, Paredes usurped the powers of a hereditary sove- 
reign. 

By a decree recently promulgated, called the ley de 
convocatoria, or the law of convocation, the great body of 

(361) 



362 TYRANNY OF PAREDES. 

the people were disfranchised and deprived of the right 
of sending deputies to the national legislatui'e. Much 
dissatisfaction was excited against the administration 
throughout the nation by this unjust and pernicious inno- 
vation upon the liberty of the masses — destroying, as it 
did, the only barrier which had been erected against the 
power of the executive, which was now untramelled by 
precedent, law, or the will of the people. The chamber 
of deputies was composed, under the new organization, of 
individuals belonging to the military, commercial, and ec- 
clesiastical portions of the population, together with those 
who were selected from the opulent miners and agricul- 
turists. The representatives were chosen by a limited 
number of electors, who were compelled, under the penalty 
of fines and imprisonment, to choose a member of Con- 
gress within a specified time. 

As an example of the manner in which this odious 
system was enforced upon the nation, in defiance of the 
protestations against it, I will cite the following instance. 
In the month of April, 1846, when elections were held for 
deputies in all the different parts of the republic, the mer- 
chants of Vera Cruz refused to choose a representative, 
whereupon, the President ordered ji'iie of their number to 
make an appointment or pay a fine of one hundred dollars 
each. The traders were, however, " rich folks," says the 
account from which I derived my information, " and would 
have preferred paying five times that amount than obey 
the unjust command of the head of the government." 
Several departments opcnl}^ protested against this condi- 
tion of things, and called upon the President to repeal the 
law of convocation and restore the masses to their rights, 
which, inherent in themselves, could not be infringed upon 
or surrendered by even their legal representatives, without 
their consent. 

The department of Vera Cruz, especially the capital, is 
happy in being able to count among her citizens many 



CONDITION OF THE PUBLIC TREASURY. 363 

intelligent and patriotic individuals, who, from constant 
intercourse with the natives of almost every foreign nation 
that has a commercial marine, have thrown aside much 
of that feeling of jealousy and distrust which is a pro- 
minent fault in the Mexican character. As might have 
been expected, the new dynasty met with much opposition 
in this section of the republic, in its attempts to force upon 
its inhabitants the measures above referred to. Accord- 
ingly, the departmental assembly petitioned the govern- 
ment to abrogate the law of convocation, and other 
restrictions which had been lately imposed upon the people. 

Paredes ansM^ered their just demands by sending a 
secret order to the governor to arrest the members of the 
council and commit them to prison. That personage 
however, refused to obey, fearing that it would cause a 
revolt, and recommended a milder course as best suited to 
the condition of the public mind. The Assembly soon 
afterwards received a communication from the Executive, 
who informed that honorable body that he had not the 
power to annul the obnoxious decree, but promised to 
hand in their remonstrance to the Congress as soon as it 
should meet in extra session on the first of the following 
month. 

The condition of the national finances, which had been 
gradu^.lly but surely growing Avorse each successive year, 
had now approximated a point where an effort must be 
made to restore the public credit, or the government must 
declare itself bankrupt. The treasury was literally ex- 
hausted at this crisis; all the revenues had been antici- 
pated, and the supreme authorities had been compelled to 
adopt the degrading and ruinous system of contracts, in 
order to supply the daily expenses of the different depart- 
ments of state. The people had been so completely 
stripped of their means by Santa Anna, that his successors, 
though they still possessed the flock, could gather no wool. 
No resort could be had to new and extraordinary taxes ; 



364 THE GOVERNMENT SUSPENDS PAYMENT. 

no imposts could be levied, everything having been already 
cessed to the very highest point. 

To call upon the masses under these circumstances 
would have been an act of villainous injustice, which even 
the bold, imperious soldier then in power would not have 
dared to do, even if his conscience would have permitted 
such a mode of raising the desired supplies. Yet it was 
absolutely necessary that the army on the Del Norte should 
be reinforced, or it would be driven back by the foreign 
enemy already encamped within hearing of its bugles, and 
whose cannon were at that moment pointed toward the 
walls of Matamoras, the great military depot of the fron- 
tier of Texas. It was imperative, also, to send troops to 
the Californias, w^hich the northern confederacy had — 
through the public press, the usual heralds of popular 
feeling — even then proclaimed to be the object of their 
desires. To meet the exigency, there was not a rial in 
the national coffers that was not already otherwise ap- 
propriated. 

" Under these afflicting circumstances, the government, 
although deeply sensible of the importance of a faithful com- 
pliance with the engagements contracted by the nation with 
its creditors, and of the fact that credit is of the utmost ne- 
cessity to every government, and faith in its promises the 
surest source of its power, found itself compelled to resort 
to extreme measures, — a course justified by the necessity 
of providing for the safety of the nation, whose ruin Avould 
have been the ruin of its creditors."* Accordingly, by a 
decree, dated May 2d, 1846, the government announced 
that it had provisionally suspended payment. By another 
decree, of the 7th of the same fatal month, over which 
some malignant planet seemed to preside, the salaries of 
all the officers employed in the public service were reduced 
one-fourth during the coming year. A circular was issued 

* Message of the President to the extraordinary Congress, June, 1846. 



IMPOLICY OF THE EXECUTIVE. 365 

at the same time to the authorities of the different depart- 
ments, earnestly calling for their aid and co-operation in 
furnishing the central government yvitlci the requisite 
means for the defence of the national territory and the 
honor of the republic. 

The unthrifty and careless mode in which the financial 
affairs of the provinces had been managed, and the rapa- 
city of the official agents, had placed the treasuries of the 
states in the same condition as that at the capital. More- 
over, the administration had not acquired the confidence 
of the nation, and in several parts of the country the 
symptoms of an approaching storm began to show them- 
selves in the political horizon. Yet it was anticipated 
that the hostile feeling which existed against the United 
States would arouse the patriotism of the inhabitants of 
the provinces, and cause them to lay aside their animosity 
toward the administration, and to unite in driving the 
enemy beyond the Sabine. In this hope the Executive 
was wofully deceived; the provincial authorities either 
could not or would not contribute a single dollar to the 
support of the measures which had been adopted for the 
defence of the republic. 

Urged by a commanding necessity, Paredes now re- 
solved to resort to the only resource left unexhausted, of 
supplying the exigencies which admitted of no delay. 
He determined to call upon the " venerable clergy," who 
had been, of late, zealously employed in every cathedi-al, 
church, and village chapel, in offering up fervent prayers 
for the success of the Mexican arms. Accordingly, on 
the 13th of May, Don Francisco Iturbe, the minister of 
finance, addressed an official communication to Don Ma- 
nuel Posada y Garduno, the primate of the church, setting 
forth the grievous calamities which threatened the republic, 
and the stern necessity of replenishing the empty coffers 
of the state ; that the war about to commence with the 
Americans must be prosecuted with vigor, at all hazards, 



366 REQUISITION ON THE CLERGY. 

and under every contingency. He informed the archbishop 
that the government had been forced to appropriate the 
revenues which had been pledged to its creditors ; that the 
stipend of its civil officers had been curtailed, and that all 
classes must unite in the effort to preserve the nation from 
impending destruction ; that the clergy alone had been ex- 
empted from the onerous burthens which had been imposed 
of late upon the rest of the people ; and while the Execu- 
tive deprecated the necessity that obliged him to call upon 
the church, he would be neglecting his duty should he fail 
in straining every nerve to relieve the government from 
the financial pressure under which it was about to be 
crushed. The minister concluded by asking for a loan of 
$2,400,000, payable in monthly installments, commencing 
on the 30th day of the coming June. The archbishop was 
finally requested to apportion the amount among the 
various orders of ecclesiastics, so that each one of them 
might contribute a sum commensurate with their means. 

On the 15th, the prelate, who was a warm supporter 
of the existing dynasty, by means of which he hoped to 
see his country ruled by a sovereign prince, replied to the 
minister, that he had convoked a meeting of his chapter, 
which would that day assemble in the hall of the sacred 
church, before which he would submit the requisition of 
the supreme government; and that he was willing to aid 
in raising supplies to the full extent of his powers, in order 
to carry on " a war in which the two precious boons so 
dear to Mexicans, of independence and religion, Avere at 
stake." 

It was certainly a bold movement on the part of the 
President to call upon the clergy to disgorge some of their 
hoarded treasure, albeit it was done to save the country 
from the horrors of an invasion. The Mexican ecclesias- 
tical establishment consists of one archiepiscopal see and 
nine bishoprics, eight cathedral chapters, divided into one 
hundred and eighty-five prebendaries and canonries, 



THE WEALTH OF THE CHURCH. 367 

which are subdivided into twelve hundred parishes. The 
number of clergy is about five thousand six hundi-ed; 
more than two-thirds of these are secular priests, who 
may be seen at any period of the day or night, loitering in 
the saloons, around the vwnte table, at the cockpit, the 
amphitheatre, or the pulquerias which abound in the ca- 
pitals. The regulars who wear the habit of their parti- 
cular order are at least two thousand, who possess one 
hundred and fifty convents and monasteries.* The streets 
of every large city swarm with these holy fathers, who 
belong generally to the Dominican, Franciscan, Augustine, 
Carmelite, and Mercedarian orders. In the city of Mexico, 
there are more than fifty monastic buildings, some of 
which are very extensive and magnificent. According to 
an estimate made a few years since, the property of the 
church, in lands, houses, plate, jewels, and money, 
amounted to ninety millions of dollars, fifty millions of 
which was held in mortmain; they also hold mortgages 
upon a vast amount of real estate in all the provinces. 
The leaders of the republican party in 1834, endeavored 
to cut down the revenues of the clergy, but their efforts 
were drowned in the cry of sacrilege, raised by the eccle- 
siastics and their devotees. Since that period, the subject 
of sequestration has been often reverted to, but those who 
had the boldness to propose it, were invariably persecuted 
and driven from the republic by the intrigues of the 
priesthood. 

The M^ealth of the ecclesiastical body has been con- 
stantly increasing, while that of the government has been 
as rapidly declining. But few persons of property die in 
Mexico without leaving a bequest to be used for pious 
purposes, or for the founding of masses or expiatory rites. 
The conquerors of the sixteenth century, whose religious 

* Report of the Minister of Justice and Ecclesiastical Affairs. The 
number of nuns is not stated in the report. 



368 THE CLERGY REFUSE TO CONTRIBUTE. 

zeal was as violent as their courage was invincible, shared 
with a liberal hand the spoils wrung from the natives, 
with the monks and friars who had followed their victo- 
rious march. After the mines began to be worked and 
the precious metals became abundant, the clergy received 
annually immense sums, which were employed in erecting 
those splendid cathedrals and churches, which fill the mind 
of the beholder with admiration. The adornments of 
these massive structures are truly magnificent; the altars 
and numerous shrines literally blaze with gold, silver, and 
jewels of inestimable value. In the great cathedral of 
Mexico is a balustrade, composed of an amalgam of silver, 
copper and gold, two or three hundred feet in length. In 
the principal church of Puebla de los Angeles, (which, ac- 
cording to a legend which has obtained universal belief 
in that country, was partly built by angels,) is an enormous 
lamp made of the precious metals which, a few years 
since, cost several thousand dollars to clean ! 

Having summoned his chapter, the archbishop laid 
before it the demands of the government, urging upon the 
convention the necessity of keeping upon good terms with 
the supreme authority at that crisis. After the lapse of 
several days, the chapter decided that they had no right to 
dispose of the property which had been given to the church 
for sacred uses ; that it was in opposition to the declara- 
tions of the Council of Trent to surrender ecclesiastical 
revenues to be appropriated to secular purposes, and that 
the Mexican clergy could not, in consequence, comply 
with the requisition of the state, even to resist a heretical 
invasion. Such was the result of the deliberations of the 
metropolitan convocation. The answer returned to the 
minister was, that, in the present condition of the tithes 
and general depreciation of property throughout the coun- 
try, it was impossible for them to pay the ninety-eight 
thousand dollars a month, which had been assigned them 
by the venerable archbishop. Disappointed in obtaining 



FREMONT'S EXPLORATION PARTY. 369 

supplies from his religious allies, Paredes was reduced to 
the greatest extremity, and was compelled to suspend 
every operation for the want of money. 

On the 1st of January, 1846, Captain Fremont — a gen- 
tlemen to whom the world is indebted for many new and 
interesting facts in relation to the topography, botany, 
geology, and inhabitants of the vast regions lying upon 
the Pacific Ocean, and bordering upon the territory of the 
United States — arrived in the vicinity of the town of Mon- 
terey, in Upper California. His party consisted of a 
number of artists and scientific gentlemen, escorted by a 
detachment of thirty dragoons ; the whole expedition, in- 
cluding servants and guides, numbered but sixty individuals- 
Captain Fremont encamped upon a hill some leagues from' 
the town, and, unattended, visited the place for the pur^ 
pose of communicating with the United States' consul. 
While there, he waited upon the authorities, stating that 
he was engaged in a scientific exploration of the territories 
adjacent. The functionaries received him courteously, and 
the young officer withdrew, perfectly satisfied with the 
result of his interview. 

The Mexican jealousy, however, soon became aroused, 
and the Americans received an insolent order to retire 
from the department immediately. Fremont returned a 
verbal answer to the individual who bore the inhospitable 
demand, that he had hoisted the flag of his country, and 
occupying a strong position he was prepared to defend it; 
that his object in entering the province was entirely peace- 
ful, that he had committed no aggression, and if attacked 
he would resist to the last, asking no quarter. The com- 
mandant of the department, Don Juan Castro, miscon- 
struing the latter part of the answer, imagined that the 
strangers intended to fight under all circumstances, and 
would give no quarter. He collected v^^ith some difficulty 
a force of a hundred and fifty men, but did not venture to 
assail the Americans, who, after a few days, departed in 
24 



370 INSURRECTION AT MAZATLAN, TEPIC, ETC. 

pursuit of the legitimate objects of the expedition. In 
their deserted camp were found a few worthless articles, 
"W^hich the commandant dignified "^vith the name of camp- 
-equipage, asserting that the invaders had fled with so 
much haste, that they had not time to remove their effects. 

The declarations of the public press of the States re- 
garding the seizure of the Californias, should a war take 
place, had caused the Mexican government to fit out an 
expedition to that region; the vessels, supplies, and troops, 
were at Mazatlan, a port on the Pacific, nearly ready to 
depart, when one of those unexpected accidents occurred 
which has frustrated many a Mexican enterprise. The 
garrison of Mazatlan revolted, and, taking possession of 
the ships' stores and munitions, pronounced against the 
ruling powers. The military stationed at San Bias and 
Tepic, followed their example. General Hernandea, act- 
ing under instructions from Don Juan Alvarez, whose 
name has ever been associated with the largest liberty, 
raised the standard of rebellion in Mechoacan ; w^hile Al- 
varez, in person, proclaiming as his motto — " Federation 
or death," aroused the Indians of the south from their 
letharg}^ and soon excited a formidable insurrection. 

In the districts of Ometepic, Chilapa, Costa Grande, 
Olinala and Costa Chica, which are situated on the coast 
of the western sea in the hot and humid lands where the 
rank vegetation constantly generates disease and death, 
dwelt a great number of pure-blooded Indians, who re- 
tained many of the superstitions of their ancestors and 
much of their ferocious courage, which Alvarez had now 
inflamed against the aristocrats. The revolution aiy 
movement soon extended into Sonora, while Gomez Farias, 
Jose Mariano Salas, Lazaro Villamil, and the Seiiors 
Trigueros, Batres, and others, endeavored to overthrow the 
dominant party in the capital, by declaiming secretly 
against Paredes and the monarchists. 

On the 20th of May, the correspondence between the 



SUPPRESSION OF THE PUBLIC PRESS. 371 

malcontents having been intercepted, thirteen eminent 
citizens who were implicated in the conspiracy were ar- 
rested, among whom were several friends of the exiled 
Santa Anna, clearly indicating the source from whence 
came the blows aimed at the government. 

The efforts made by Paredes to maintain his position 
were such as were dictated by the law of self-preservation, 
although they were unauthorized by precedent or the consti- 
tution. The chief magistrate, raised to power by the voice 
of the army and clergy, felt it his duty to hold on to the 
authority he had been vested with ; it became necessary 
for him, in order to do this, that the complaints with which 
his administration was assailed should be hushed. The 
journals of the capital and principal cities were divided in 
opinion upon the measures brought forward by the Execu- 
tive; and having enjoyed absolute liberty during the 
presidency of Herrera, the political editors now vied with 
each other in defending or opposing what they deemed the 
good or bad policy pursued by the government. The re- 
publican portion of the press had been very bitter against 
Paredes from the beginning, denouncing his aristocratic 
principles, as tending to the destruction of the indepen- 
dence and freedom of the nation; accusing him of 
conspiring with the clergy to bring back the odious sys- 
tem of monarchy which had perished w^ith the ill-fated 
Iturbide, and of selling himself to the natural enemies of 
Mexico. 

Possessing despotic power, and sensible of the influence 
exercised by the press, the President arrested those editors 
and publishers who had by their spirited and patriotic 
conduct rendered themselves obnoxious to him. The 
victims of his tyranny were either banished from their 
homes or confined in the common receptacles of vice and 
crime, herded with robbers, thieves and assassins. The 
journals under the patronage of the government, openly 
advocated the project of placing a prince of the house of 



372 ARISTA'S DISPATCH TO PAREDES. 

Bourbon upon the throne of Mexico, as the only plan cal- 
culated to rescue the country from impending ruin. 

On the 16th, the dispatch of General Arista reached the 
capital, and created an intense excitement among all 
classes; the gallantry of the commander and his brave 
men was the theme of universal praise, and no one 
doubted that he v^ould succeed in annihilating the Ameri- 
can forces. A few hours, however, changed their joy into 
grief; the army of the north, it was known, had been de- 
feated on the 9th; Paredes concealed the details from the 
public for several days, for reasons natural enough to one 
in his peculiar position. When the full particulars of the 
battle were published, the people exhibited emotions of 
rage and vindictive despair ; the populace perambulated 
the streets of the capital and large cities, shouting male- 
dictions; the drums beat for volunteers, and the fierce cry 
of Mueran los Americanos, resounded through every city, 
town and village, from Vera Cruz to Mazatlan. The vete- 
rans of the line had been beaten and di-iven across the 
frontier — ever fatal to the Mexican arms ; the usurping 
army of the enemy had vanquished a superior force, com- 
manded by a skillful leader, and General Taylor was the 
undisputed master of the left bank of the Del Norte. 

Paredes was perhaps more deeply disappointed than 
any of his countrymen at the issue of the conflict, begun 
by his orders,* under the signature of the secretary of war. 
His chagrin was suddenly turned into anger a few days 
after, when a dispatch arrived from the north, written by 
Arista, who informed him that, " the means of subsistence 
for the division being consumed, its energy paralyzed, and 
its artillery diminished, while that of the enemy had 
been greatly increased in number and calibre, to such an 
extent that were he to open his fire, the city of Matamoras 
would be instantly destroyed, to the utter ruin of the 

* Vide Paredes's Message, Appendix XIV. 



BLOCKADE OF VERA CRUZ. 373 

national and foreign interests," — he had decided upon 
evacuating the place before he would be compelled to 
retire with dishonor. 

A soldier of no inconsiderable reputation himself, 
Paredes could not pardon the " General-in-chief, who, ac- 
cording to his own statements, still preserved four thou- 
sand troops of the line, without counting auxiliaries," the 
error he had been guilty of in leaving his position against 
his positive orders, it being of the utmost importance as a 
depot of arms and reinforcements. The President, under 
these circumstances, removed Arista from the command of 
the army, and summoned him to Mexico, to answer for his 
conduct before a court-martial, as provided for by the 
articles of war in such cases. 

On the 18th of May, the American squadron, consisting 
of the Falmouth, Adams, Raritan, Mississippi and Somers 
ships of war, commenced the blockade of Vera Cruz,* 
while the sloop of war St. Mary was stationed off the port 
of Tampico. There were several American vessels lying 
under the guns of San Juan de Ulloa at the time, whose 
masters were unaware of the hostile position of affairs. 
The authorities of the city asserted that they should be 
seized as lawful prizes, being the property of the enemy ; 
as they were about to take possession of the vessels. Ge- 
neral Nicholas Bravo, the commandant-general of the de- 
partment, refused to permit the ships to be seized, saying, 
that as they had entered the harbor as peaceful merchant- 
men, in good faith, they should depart as they had come. 

When Captain Gregory, who then commanded the 
fleet, heard of the honorable course which had been pur- 
sued by Bravo, he instantly released several Mexican prizes 
which he had captured, and sent them into port, with a 
letter to the Mexican general, expressive of his apprecia- 
tion of his magnanimous conduct. Bravo replied, by 

* The formal blockade did not commence for some days afterwards. 



374 INTRIGUES OF SANTA ANNA'S PARTISANS. 

disclaiming any title to praise, inasmuch as he had merely 
obeyed the dictates of justice, which demands that private 
property should always be respected, even at a time of 
national collision, when it is held by innocent parties. 
Toward the close of the month. Commodore Sloat, com- 
manding the American squadron in the Pacific, formally 
declared the blockade of Mazatlan, and, in conjunction 
with Commodore Stockton, soon placed the western coast 
under strict surveillance. 

At this crisis, when every thing seemed to conspire to 
overwhelm the nation beneath rapidly accumulating mis- 
fortunes, the archbishop of Mexico departed from the 
troubled scene. He had been the main pillar of the 
monarchical party, and his death was an irreparable loss 
to that faction, which never recovered from the shock. 
This prelate was by no means a bad man, though an aris- 
tocrat and an intriguing politician; it cannot be doubted 
but that he had conscientiously believed that a govern- 
ment based upon the principles which he advocated was 
more suitable to the condition of Mexico than the uncer- 
tain, weak, and ephemeral systems which had succeeded 
each other with such rapidity since the fall of Iturbide. 

The partisans of Santa Anna, uniting their strength 
with that of the federalists, labored assiduously to reinstate 
him in the affections of the people, falsely attributing to 
his rival the evils which had lately befallen the republic. 
The poverty of the government aided the machinations of 
the discontented in their efforts to bring about a revolu- 
tion; the soldiery receiving no pay became mutinous, and 
were disposed to favor any change which would bring 
them the means of gratifying their licentious appetites. 
Paredes, aware of this, had, as we have seen, endeavored, 
but without success, to raise money, and having failed he 
was forced to await the expected outbreak. 

On the morning of the 20th of May, the battalion of 
Lagos, quartered in the city of Guadalaxara, followed by 



PRONUNCIAMENTO AT GUADALAXARA. 375 

a great number of the populace, led on by Don Jose Maria 
Yannez, advanced in a body into the great square, and, 
shouting " long live the republic," fired upon the palace of 
the governor. The troops stationed to guard the building 
answered by a discharge of artillery, which did some slight 
injury, and for a time threw the assailants into confusion; 
they, however, soon rallied, and having been joined by 
some other troops renewed the assault ; the soldiers at the 
palace now refused to fire, fearful of hurting the friends 
whom they had recognized among the mob. A squadron 
of cavalry was then ordered to charge the insurgents, and 
a skirmishing fight ensued between them, which continued 
for some time without resulting in any great advantage 
upon either side. Evening found the belligerents in this 
position, both parties retiring to make preparations for a 
decisive action on the following day. 

It being evident that the disaffection was almost uni- 
versal among the citizens and soldiery. General Francisco 
Duque proposed a parley, which being granted, commis- 
sioners w^ere appointed to decide upon the subjects in 
dispute. A convention was drawn up and signed by the 
leaders on both sides, stipulating that Duque and the offi- 
cers under his command should leave Guadalaxara by the 
22d, and evacuating the department of Jalisco, march to 
the capital by a specified route. The government troops, 
weakened by desertion, and upholding a bad cause, were 
compelled to accept of the conditions dictated by the 
people and military chiefs. 

The first act of the successful party was to issue a pro- 
nunciamento against the dominant power, and a plan for 
the regeneration of the republic; the preamble of which 
protested strongly against the design of erecting Mexico 
into a monarchy and placing a foreign prince upon the 
throne. It also denounced the law of the convocation, and 
the Congress about to assemble, as aristocratic and opposed 
to the national feelings, the great mass of the people not 



376 MEETING OF CONGRESS. 

being represented therein. The plan then declared that a 
new Congress should be convened, to be composed of depu- 
ties elected according to the electoral laws of 1824; who 
shall meet within four months after the republican army 
has gained possession of the capital; the Congress to 
adopt a constitution from which the monarchical principle 
was to be excluded; the existence of the liberating army 
was guaranteed under all circumstances. The sixth 
article of the plan declared that Don Antonio Lopez de 
Santa Anna was the founder of the Mexican republic, and 
whatever may have been his errors, he had ever been its 
powerful champion, in spite of the European nations and 
the instigations of perverse Mexicans ; that he had op- 
posed himself to the usurpations of the Americans, and 
that the troops assembled at Guadalaxara proclaimed him 
as the chief of the patriotic movement. The seventh ar- 
ticle proposed to appropriate one-fourth of the revenues 
of every department to the use of the forces then engaged 
in the war with the United States. 

A provisional government was then organized, the of5- 
cers of which were sworn to sustain the republican prin- 
ciples, and to repel the invasion from the north. The 
whole of the western and southern portions of the country 
were arraj^'ed against the authority of Paredes, the insur- 
gents under Alvarez and his friends openly defying the 
attempts of General Rea, who had been sent to quell the 
revolt. The latter, though he repeatedly urged the neces- 
sity of being reinforced, and furnished with supplies, Avas 
ileft to carry on his military operations as he could under 
[these disadvantageous circumstances. 

On the first day of June, 1846, the Congress which had 
been summoned by the President ad interim assembled at 
ithe national palace, and was opened by Paredes in the 
lUsual mode. In his message to the deputies, he displayed 
>to them with commendable candor the actual condition of 
the republic; — torn by faction, destitute of means, and 



CHARACTER OF THE LEGISLATURE. 377 

engaged with a foreign enemy whose fleets blockaded 
every harbor on both seas, and whose victorious troops 
were already masters of the northern frontier. He repu- 
diated the doctrines generally ascribed to him, and asserted 
his determination to support the representative, popular, 
and republican system. In regard to the war with the 
States, he said that he had " found himself compelled, on 
the 21st of March, to declare solemnly that peace not be- 
ing compatible with the maintenance of the rights and 
independence of the nation, its territory should be defend- 
ed, until the national Congress should (while we were 
engaged in the conflict) determine to declare war against 
the United States. After having assembled more than 
five thousand men on the frontier, I directed the general- 
in-chief of our division to attack the enemy, and he resolved 
to cross the river, taking a position between St. Isabel and 
the fortified point of Paso Real."* Paredes closed his 
address by calling upon the deputies to aid him in the pa- 
triotic effort to restore the public tranquillity, develope the 
immense resources of the nation, and to drive back the 
invading foe. 

The legislative body, unfortunately, did not possess the 
confidence of the people; and as each day brought the 
news of some fresh outbreak in favor of Santa Anna, and 
the constitution of 1824, they felt themselves unequal to 
the task of freeing the country from so many dangers. 
Their deliberations were, therefore, characterized by more 
than the usual degree of procrastination, inefficiency, and 
vacillation, which has so long distinguished the proceed- 
ings of the Mexican senate. Of the hundred members 
composing the assembly, there was scarcely one who was 
not devoted to the administration and ready to obey its 
demands, regardless of the wishes of the nation. They 
were Paredes' meuy and not the representatives of the peo- 

* See Appendix, XIV. 



378 PROGRESS OF REVOLT. 

pie, upon whom they sought to force a system of govern- 
ment as distasteful as it was unnecessary. 

Anticipating the downfall of the Executive, Iturbe, the 
minister of the treasury, and Tornel, the secretary of war 
and marine, had shortly before resigned their offices ; the 
latter having previously been in close correspondence with 
Santa Anna, prepared to array himself under his ancient 
friend, albeit he had so lately served his deadliest enemy. 
Paredes lost by their desertion two of his best councillors, 
at a crisis when he could ill spare them. On the 16th of 
June, an election was held by the chambers for executive 
officers, and Paredes and Bravo were chosen to the re- 
sponsible stations of President and Vice-President, dignities 
which were hourly becoming more laborious and uncertain. 
The deputies were unable to furnish the means essential 
to the existence of the administration, though they were 
disposed to confirm its decrees, however unjust or despotic; 
a course which hastened the fall of their leader, and their 
own dissolution as the supreme legislative power of the 
republic. 

To add to the sufferings of the nation, intelligence was 
brought to the capital of dreadful ravages made upon the 
frontiers of Durango, Coahuila, and Chihuahua, by the 
savage Camanches, Apacheras, and other barbarous tribes, 
who had seized the period of universal calamity to perpe- 
trate the most horrible deeds upon the lives and property 
of distant and unprotected communities. The government 
could, of course, afford them no protection. 



CHAPTER V. 

The Congress of the United States declares the existence of the War 
with Mexico — Declaration of Paredes, 1st of June — Pronunciamento 
at Vera Cruz — Revolt of the Capital — Fall of Paredes — Return of 
Santa Anna — He is allowed to pass the American Fleet — The Rea- 
sons for the same — Paredes imprisoned at Perote — General Kear- 
ney's Expedition — He takes possession of Santa Fe and New 
Mexico — Commodore Sloat raises the Flag of the Union in Cali- 
fornia — General Taylor advances to Camargo — March toward 
Monterey — Number of American Troops, artillery, cavalry, and 
bayonets, employed in the siege and capture of Monterey — Descrip- 
tion of the City — Skirmish with the Enemy's Cavalry at Ramas — 
The Array encamps at the Walnut Springs — Advance of General 
Worth — Garland's attack on the first Battery — Captain Backus and 
his men — Capture of the Redoubt by Quitman's brigade — Advance 
of the Ohio troops — Garland's second charge — The Bridge of Puris- 
sima — Charge of the Mexican lancers — Bragg's light battery — 
Storming of the Heights — Bishop's Palace — The Texans — The 
retreat of the Enemy to the Plaza — Ampudia proposes to surrender 
the Town — Correspondence between the Generals — Terms of Ca- 
pitulation — And the cause of their acceptance. 

General Taylor's successful operations on the Del 
Norte had created a most lively sensation among all 
classes of his countrymen, who fully appreciated the abi- 
lity of the victorious commander, and the gallantry of his 
officers and men. On the 11th day of May, 1846, the 
President of the American Union had announced in a 
message to Congress, that hostilities had been commenced 
by Mexico, the troops of that power having passed the 
boundary of the States, and " shed American blood upon 

(379) 



380 SURRENDER OF CAMARGO, MIER, ETC. 

American soil." On the ISth of the same month, Congress 
declared as follows : " Whereas, by the act of the Repub- 
lic of Mexico a state of war exists between that govern- 
ment and the United States ;" and in order that the contest 
might be brought to a speedy and triumphant close, the 
President was authorized to accept without delay of the 
services of fifty thousand volunteers, and ten millions of 
dollars were placed at his disposal to carry the above into 
effect. Troops were accordingly mustered in all parts of 
the confederacy; and such was the enthusiasm of the 
people, particularly in the south and west, that a force of 
three hundred thousand men presented themselves for im- 
mediate service within thirty days. To the great disap- 
pointment of these patriotic citizens, but a small number 
of regiments were enrolled into the service. 

In the early part of June, the army on the Rio Grande 
having been increased to eight thousand men, the General 
dispatched a division under Lieutenant Colonel Wilson up 
the river to take possession of the town of Reinosa, a 
movement which was effected without opposition, the re- 
treat of Arista having left the frontier entirely exposed. 
It was evidently not the intention of the enemy to risk 
another battle this side of Monterey, to which city he had 
retired, marching slowly, his artillery being drawn by oxen 
and his ammunition conveyed in carts. Beyond Reinosa 
were the towns of Camargo, Mier, and Re villa, which sub- 
sequently surrendered without a blow. Camargo was the 
point selected as a depot of supplies, which were for- 
warded there as soon as the steamboats necessary for 
their transportation could be procured. 

While engaged in preparing to follow the Mexicans, 
the commander-in-chief received a communication from 
the war department, dated 4th of June, directing him to 
distribute a proclamation, which had been drawn up by 
the government, among the people of Mexico. The Gene- 
rals Ampudia and Arista had issued several invitations to 



THE PROCLAMATION OF TAYLOR. 381 

the American troops to desert the service of the " ambi- 
tious, overbearing, and insolent" people of the north, who 
made use of them, as " vile tools to carry on their abomi- 
nable plans of pillage and rapine." Those vi^ho would 
abandon their colors were offered three hundred and 
twenty acres of land.* Several German and Irish soldiers, 
who entertained no very strong affection for their adopted 
country, seduced by the flattering allurements held out to 
them by the enemy, had deserted before the retreat of the 
Mexican forces ; some of these villains were shot by the 
camp-guard as they were swimming the river ; those who 
reached the opposite bank bitterly repented of the folly 
which had caused them to listen to the promises of Arista. 
The proclamation which General Taylor caused to be 
circulated was of an entirely different character, and illus- 
trates the great and widely marked peculiarities of the 
two nations. The republic, after recalling to the Mexicans 
the evils they had endured from the iron rule of military 
tyrants, solemnly pledged herself to respect the lives, reli- 
gion, and property of those who did not appear in arms, 
or oppose the march of the invading army, a pledge which 
has been sacredly observed during the continuance of the 
struggle thus far; and never since the hour Mars kindled 
the fire-brands of war, and unloosed his blood-hounds to 
ravage peaceful realms, have hostilities been conducted 
upon such truly Christian principles. Not one deed of 
rapine, not one act of wanton cruelty, has sullied the vic- 
tories, or detracted from the glory of the triumphs which 
have crowned the American arms. On the contrary, the 
invasion has been to northern Mexico a blessed visitation ; 
their own military chiefs have been driven into the interior, 
the people are protected in their rights, the supplies they 
furnish to the victors are paid for, and peace, order, and 
the supremacy of the law, has been maintained in every 

* See Appendix, XV, XVI. 



382 PREPARATIONS FOR CARRYING ON THE WAR. 

village, town, and city, above which the flag of the States 
waves its folds. This humane policy has been persevered 
in, notwithstanding the many provocations which have 
been received, and which would have long since justified 
a resort to the law of retaliation. Hundreds of Americans 
have perished under the knife of the midnight assassin, 
and many a mutilated corpse lies mouldering in the depths 
of the chapparal which lines the road from Point Isabel to 
Saltillo. 

The government of the United States having received 
indubitable evidence of the determination of the Mexicans 
of all ranks and parties to continue the contest, regardless 
of all consequences, vigorously set to work to " conquer a 
peace," — a difficult experiment, but not impracticable; in 
fact, the events of the last year have proved this to be the 
only mode of bringing the enemy to their senses. It was 
proposed to invade the interior of Mexico at three different 
points at the same time; the main army, under Taylor, to 
follow the route to Monterey, Saltillo and San LuisPotosi; 
the second division, commanded by Brigadier- General 
Wool, was ordered to rendezvous at Bexar, and from 
thence march upon Chihuahua ; finally, the third, which 
was to be composed of a smaller force, was mustered at 
Fort Leavenworth, and was to cross the plains and take 
possession of Santa Fe, of New Mexico. By adopting this 
plan, it was presumed that the war would be brought to a 
speedy conclusion, as the Mexicans would be compelled to 
raise, organize, and equip, three separate armies of con- 
siderable strength, which was known to be utterly impos- 
sible in the then exhausted condition of their treasury. 

Colonel Kearney, who was the commander of the Santa 
Fe expedition, began his march in June, at the head of two 
thousand seven hundred men, cavalry, infantry, and artil- 
lery, a part of whom were INIissouri volunteers, accustomed 
to use of the rifle, and the adventurous life of backwoodsmen. 
There was also under his orders a battalion of Mormons, 



INEFFICIENCY OF CONGRESS. 383 

who were about moving in a body to the shores of the 
Pacific in search of a home, where their superstitious and 
heretical religious opinions would be allowed to flourish 
in their luxuriant wildness. 

While these preparations for the invasion of Mexico 
were in rapid progress, the people and government of that 
country were arrayed in deadly hostility to each other. 
Paredes had met with some slight success against the 
partisans of Santa Anna; the troops he had sent into 
Jalisco having checked the advance of the rebels, and 
driven them with loss back to Guadalaxara, which they 
had, however, fortified, and held possession of with a for- 
midable force. Alvarez had taken all the principal cities 
on the western coast, the insurrection spreading in every 
direction until but a small portion of the republic remained 
in allegiance to the administration. 

It was the desire of Paredes that he would be permitted 
to take command of the army of the north in person, that 
he might prove to the nation his devotion to their interests. 
His friends would not allow him to leave the capital, 
knowing that the opposing factions would seize that mo- 
ment to overthrow his dynasty, and consummate their 
designs ; the members of his cabinet tendered their resig- 
nations, when he announced his determination of setting 
out for Monterey. Under these circumstances, the Presi- 
dent was compelled to remain at the capital. Congress 
continued, in the mean time, to hold its sessions from 
week to week, and, although many measures had been 
proposed for the relief of the country, but little was done, 
the want of money stifling every scheme at its birth. 
Two months had been consumed in useless debate, when 
a sudden change took place which abruptly closed their 
deliberations. 

The revolutionists did not neglect the opportunity 
afforded them by the inefficiency of the government to 
advance their cause ; they had gained over the populace 



384 PRONUNCIAMENTO AT VERA CRUZ. 

of the city — ever ready for revolt — and a part of the troops 
stationed there for the protection of government. In the 
early part of August, every thing being arranged, the 
storm burst forth, and svv^ept the aristocratic faction from 
power, leaving not av^^reck behind. On the 3d of August, 
intelligence was received at the capital, that the city of 
Vera Cruz had declared in favor of Santa Anna on the 
31st of the preceding month, and had invited the illus- 
trious exile to return to his native land. This information 
created a great excitement; Paredes and Bravo made a 
gallant effort to sustain themselves, but it was too late. 

On the morning of the 4th, Generals Juan Morales and 
Jose Mariano de Salas, in conjunction with Gomez Farias 
and the other leaders of their party, raised the tricolor and 
issued a pronunciamento in favor of the republican federal 
system. The movement was eminently successful ; the 
revolutionists occupied the citadel of Mexico, and were 
sustained by the greater part of the troops, but a small 
number of whom remained faithful to Paredes and Bravo. 
Any attempt to contest the supremacy against such supe- 
rior numbers would have been madness ; the President soon 
after left the city, escorted by a squadron of lancers, and 
took the road to Queretaro. 

Owing to the respect entertained for the character and 
services of General Bravo, the Vice-President, he was 
unmolested, and remained at the capital. The laws en- 
acted by the Congress were declared null by the new 
authorities, and that body was dissolved without delay.* 
All Mexicans who had been exiled, and especially Don 
Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna, " the well-deserving of his 
country," were invited to return ; the latter personage was 
solicited to take command of the armies of the republic. 
A new Congress was to be summoned immediately, to 
meet within four months, the members to be elected ac- 

* See Appendix, XVII. 



SANTA ANNA'S RETURN TO MEXICO. 385 

cording to the laws of 1824; any one who should attempt 
to retard the election of representatives, to dissolve the 
legislative body, or to suspend its sessions, was declared 
to be a traitor to the nation. Salas and his associates 
further announced in their plan for the regeneration of the' 
republic ; that the monarchical principle should be exclud- 
ed from the future form of government, and that the honor,, 
rights, and independence of the people should be main- 
tained. On the 7th, General Salas assumed the supreme 
command, which he exercised with moderation and a due 
regard to the interests of his countrymen. On the 16th of 
August, the steamer Arab sailed into the harbor of Vera 
Cruz, having on board the person and suite of the late 
exile, his excellency, General Santa Anna. Orders had, 
been issued as early as the 13th of May, by the Executive,. 
to the commander of the blockading fleet, " not to obstruct 
the passage of Santa Anna to Mexico, should he attempt 
to return;" he had, therefore, been allowed to pass without 
molestation. 

The reasons for which this singular order was given, 
are stated by the President to have been based upon the 
belief, that the return of the exile would breed " intestine 
divisions" among the Mexicans, and that, weakened by 
the contests of rival factions, whoever triumphed, in the 
end both parties would be disposed to restore and preserve 
peace with the States.* A most fatal error it was, to thus 
sanction the return of perhaps the only man in all Mexico, 
who was capable of uniting the various parties, develop- 
ing the resources of the country, or of organizing and 
maintaining a powerful army. A better mode of indefi- 
nitely prolonging the war could not have been suggested 
by the demon of discord himself. Santa Anna was received 
with the liveliest enthusiasm by the Vera Cruzans. — 

* See the President of the United States' annual Message to Congress, 
December, 1846. 
25 



386 NEW OFFICERS APPOINTED. 

iSalutes of artillery, the rolling of drums, and the loud 
;shouts of the people welcomed him as he touched the 
shore, from which, six years before, he had driven the re- 
treating French; this was recalled to his mind now, and 
he felt that fortune had returned to his side. 

Soon after landing, Santa Anna issued a manifesto, in 
which he congratulated the nation upon the result of the 
late revolution, and the prospect of a continuance of the 
blessings of independence and liberty ; his remarks on the 
existing war were neither violently expressed nor con- 
ceived in an ungenerous spirit. On the 18th the General 
left for his hacienda of Encerro, where he was met by a 
deputation from the government, officially informing him 
of the desire of the nation that he would assume the su- 
preme authority as soon as possible. 

In the mean time, Paredes, who had fled from the 
capital with a party of fifty lancers, was captured on the 
5th by a strong body of cavalry which had been sent in 
pursuit of him; he made no resistance, and was conveyed 
back to the city. He was treated w^ith the greatest cour- 
tesy by Salas and his friends, and after being confined 
some days there, was sent to the castle of Perote, as a pri- 
soner, to await the sentence of his rival. The two chiefs 
approached the lofty mountains which wall in the valley 
of Anahuac, by a strange coincidence, at the same moment, 
in opposite directions, and with far different prospects; 
one was returning from exile, the envied idol of the peo- 
ple, the other was on his way to a gloomj^ prison, perhaps 
to fill a grave already prepared by his victorious enemy. 

General Almonte and the Senor Rejon arrived at the 
capital in the latter part of August, and were immediately 
appointed to office ; the former as secretary of war and 
marine, the latter as minister of foreign relations. The 
whole of Mexico had by this time given in its adhesion to 
the new government ; even Yucatan had pronounced for 
Santa Anna and the federal system. 



KEARNEY TAKES POSSESSION OF SANTA FE. 387 

On Sunday, the 16th of August, General Kearney's 
advance reached the town of San Miguel, a few miles from 
Santa Fe, after a toilsome march over the plains of nearly 
nine hundred miles.* The alcalde and people of the vil- 
lage were immediately summoned to the presence of the 
American commander, who addressed them as friends, 
informing them he came, by the order of the government 
of the United States, to take possession of New Mexico, 
and to extend its laws overf them; that he had a large 
force with him, and that another army would soon pass 
through their village, he added, that they were absolved 
from all allegiance to Don Manuel Armijo, the former 
governor of the province, and that they were now under 
the protection of the United States. The alcalde was then 
requested to take the oath of fidelity prescribed in such 
cases. That functionary, however, demurred, desiring to be 
excused until the capital had acknowledged the sovereignty 
of the States; he finally consented, provided his religion 
was protected. The General assuring him that it should 
be, he readily took the following oath, administered to him 
in presence of the people by the former : " You swear that 
you will bear true allegiance to the government of the 
United States of America ; and that you will defend her 
against all her enemies and opposers, in the name of the 
Father, Son, and the Holy Ghost. Amen." After this 
ceremony, the alcalde was confirmed in his office, and the 
inhabitants charged to obey him as heretofore. The village 
padre then invited the general and his staff* to his house, 
where they partook of refreshments, and finally parted 
on the best of terms. 

Various rumors had been conveyed to Kearney, as he 
was advancing of strong bodies of horse, foot, and artillery, 



* It was performed in fifty days. 

f This account of Kearney's expedition is taken from the journal of 
an officer under his command. 



388 KEARNEY'S ADDRESS TO THE PEOPLE. 

that were mustering to dispute his progress ; as he ap- 
proached the city of Santa Fe, it became evident that there 
would be no defence made of the territory. On the 17th, 
the picket guard took a son of Captain Salazar prisoner — 
the monster whose cruelty has been referred to in the ac- 
count given of the disastrous Texan expedition. The 
youth stated that the governor had fled, his men had dis- 
persed, and the road was open. The fact was, that Armijo 
was too shrewd and selfish a personage to risk an engage- 
ment, although he had collected a strong force, which had 
been posted in a narrow pass, defended by several pieces 
of cannon. On the evening of the 18th of August, the 
General entered the city of Santa Fe, and dismounting with 
his escort, was received by the authorities and conducted 
into the public hall. He there informed them of his inten- 
tion to occupy the country, and assured them of safety and 
protection in their liberty, religion, and property. While 
he was yet speaking, the roar of artillery was heard, and 
the flag of the Union flung its folds over the capital of New 
Mexico. 

On the 19th, General Kearney, who occupied Armijo's 
palacio, addressed the inhabitants of the town and sur- 
rounding country, who had assembled for the pm-pose of 
hearing him speak. He repeated to them the object of 
his invasion of the territory, giving them positive assur- 
ances of protection in all things. Many families of the 
better sort had fled at the approach of the Americans; these 
he requested their friends to bring back, and to say to tliem 
that they would live more safely under his administration 
than they had ever done before. He concluded by for- 
mally absolving them from their allegiance to Mexico, and 
claimed them as citizens of the United States. The acting 
governor and municipal authorities then took the pre- 
scribed oath, and the people exclaimed with a simulta- 
neous shout, " Viva la General !" 



KEARNEY'S MARCH TO CALIFORNIA. 389 

The governor ad interim then addressed his countrymen 
as follows : 

" John Baptist Vigil, political and military governor pro tern., 
of the department of New Mexico, to the inhabitants of Santa Fe, 
the capital thereof, greeting : It having been out of my power by all 
the means I could put in practice, to calm the fears impressed on the 
people by the desertion of General Don Manuel Armijo and his 
soldiers, and what was most frightful, he having made them conceive 
on the approach of the military forces of the government of the 
United States of North America to the capital, that said forces were 
composed of cruel and sanguinary savages, upon which many fa- 
milies left their homes to hide themselves in the desert — believing 
that no security, no protection to their lives or property, was to be 
expected from the commander of said forces. In order to quiet these 
fears, I have thought it convenient and necessary to cause to be set 
up in the most public places, the proclamation of the chief of said 
forces, of which the following is the tenor." 

He then read the manifesto in the Spanish language 
which had been issued by the General ; the instrument will 
be found at the close of this work.* A provisional govern- 
ment was subsequently organized at Santa Fe, of which 
Mr. Bent, an American well acquainted with the peculiar- 
ities of the people of that remote region, was appointed 
the Executive. 

General Kearney having received the expected rein- 
forcements, soon after left for California with a detachment 
of one hundred men. The Mormon battalion, consisting 
of five hundred men, under the command of Colonel Cooke, 
also marched for the same point; advancing through the 
province of Sonora, to Las Playas, and San Bernardino, 
they reached the banks of the Rio San Pedro, and followed 
that river to the sea of Cortes, and thence proceeded up 
the coast to the capital of California, which had been in 
possession of the Americans several months. 

On the 6th of July, 1848, Commodore Sloat had hoisted 

* See Appendix, XVIII. 



390 NUMBER OF AMERICAN TROOPS. 

the flag of the United States on the walls of Monterey, and 
announced to the inhabitants of the country that, although 
he came in arms, with a powerful force, he did not come 
as an enemy, but as " their best friend," as thenceforth 
California would belong to the States, and her people 
would enjoy the same rights and privileges as the citizens 
of any other portion of that republic* 

On the 19th of August, Commodore Stockton declared 
all the ports of Mexico south of San Diego to be in a 
state of vigorous blockade, which was to be absolute, ex- 
cept to armed vessels of neutrals. 

About the middle of August, the several corps d'armee 
under the command of General Taylor were concentrated 
at Camargo. His troops, part of whom were volunteers, 
consisted of eight thousand seven hundred and forty men, 
a portion of whom were cavalry .f On the 20th of that 

* See Appendix, XIX. 

f The army that marched on Monterey was as follows : 
butler's division. 
1st regiment Ohio volunteers — Col. Mitchell ) „ 'Pi arlp S ^^^ 
1st do. Kentucky do. Col. Ormsby ) ( 540 

1st do. Tennessee troops — Col. Campbell ^ . ^ r 540 
Mississippi volunteers — Col. Davis t B 'a dp j ^^^ 

Baltimore battalion— Watson (Total, 2710) ) ° ( 400 

worth's division. 

Col. p. Smith's regiment of regular troops 500 

Parts of 6th and other infantry regiments and dragoons 1080 

Two companies, McCulloch's and Gillespie's Texas rangers 100 

(Total, 1700.) 

twigg's division. 

Texas mounted men — Col. Hays' 500 

May's dragoons — 4 companies 250 

Ridgely and Duncan's flying artillery 100 

Webster's artillery (a 10 inch mortar) 60 

Parts of several infontry regiments and of artillery armed as in- 
fantry— (Total, 2230) 13-30 

Total, in all 6640 



MARCH TO MONTEREY. 391 

month, General Worth began his march toward the city of 
Monterey, the capital of the department of Nueva Leon. 
His division, composed of one thousand five hmidred and 
eighty regulars, and two companies of Texas rangers, two 
hundred and twenty in number, reached Cerralvo, seventy 
miles distant, on the 25th, and encamped beyond the town, 
having encountered no obstructions, nor a single hostile 
party upon the route. Butler's and Twigg's divisions fol- 
lowed shortly after; and on the 5th of September the 
general-in-chief left Camargo to join the army which had 
preceded him, leaving the town garrisoned with a force of 
two thousand one hundred men, which reduced the number 
of troops on the advance against the enemy to six thousand 
six hundred and forty-five. 

The Texan cavalry were sent forward by General 
Worth to reconnoitre, and to ascertain whether the Mexi- 
cans occupied the road in front ; about forty miles beyond 
Cerralvo, the rangers discovered a strong body of regular 
lancers and ranchero horsemen posted in a ravine. As 
the latter were too numerous to encounter with the hope 
of success, the former returned to camp; and General 
Worth receiving a reinforcement, the march toward Mon- 
terey was resumed, it being evident that the enemy did not 
intend to dispute their passage. The troops suffered much 
during the long march of more than one hundred and fifty 
miles from the excessive heat and fatigue ; it was of im- 
mense service, however, to the volunteer corps, as it con- 
duced to their improvement in discipline, and, as it were, 
converted them into regular soldiery. Leaving the village 
of Marin on the 18th, the army reached the Walnut 
Springs, three miles from Monterey, on the following day, 
and encamped ; the Mexican cavalry had been seen fre- 
quently in the front, and some slight skirmishing had taken 
place on the route, from which it was inferred that a strong 
force occupied the city. 

The capital of Nueva Leon is situated in the valley 



392 DEFENCES OF MONTEREY. 

of San Juan, on all sides of which rise lofty and rugged 
hills; along the base of these heights wind cultivated 
fields of corn, sugar, and maguey, while on the mountains 
above are seen scanty crops of wheat and barley. The 
orange and the plantain, the pine-apple and the bannana, 
the grape, and all the fruits of the temperate and tropical 
regions, flourish in this sheltered and well-watered valley; 
protected as it is by the elevated ridges of the eastern 
branch of the Sierra Madre, some of whose peaks tower to 
the skies. 

Monterey is laid out into regular streets ; the houses 
are seldom more than one story high, and built of stone, 
and with parapeted roofs, which served the purpose of 
the defenders right well during the siege. The heights 
which overlooked the city had been fortified at several 
points; a large work had been recently erected which 
commanded the northern approaches, while the Bishop's 
palace and adjoining hills were fortified so as to defend 
the city in the direction of the Saltillo road ; the cemetery 
below was also turned into a stronghold; its vi^alls were 
pierced for cannon, and upon the eastern side several 
smaller works mounted with batteries defended the lower 
part of the town. Trenches were cut in several of the 
streets, which, with the peculiar manner in which the 
houses were built, rendered the interior of the place almost 
.as strong as the regular fortifications without. The city 
and works were armed with forty-two pieces of ordnance, 
the magazines were filled with ammunition, the garrison 
consisted of seven thousand troops of the line, and from 
two to three thousand irregular and auxiliary forces. The 
,number of inhabitants was about ten thousand, who were 
.commanded to " assist in the national defence ^^ ith their 
;arms, in the manner, time, and form, which the authorities 
^should determine."* 

* Ampudia's Proclamation, Aug. 31st, 1846, to the people of Monterey. 



THE SIEGE OF MONTEREY. 393 

The Mexicans were under General Pedro de Ampudia, 
who had declared Monterey to be in a state of siege even 
before Taylor left Camargo, and had suspended the civil 
power, proclaiming martial law in its stead, as early as 
the 31st of August. On the evening of the 19th of Sep- 
tember, the American commander ordered a reconnoissance 
of the works in the direction of the Saltillo road, which 
was ably executed ^by the engineer officers under the su- 
perintendence of Major Mansfield, of that eflicient arm of 
the service. A reconnoissance was also successfully 
made at the same time on the eastern side of the town, 
which confirmed the opinion already formed by the gene- 
ral, that it was not improbable that the place, strong as it 
undoubtedly was, could be carried. Instead, however, of 
making regular approaches to it by opening parallels in 
the ordinary mode, he resolved to take it by means of 
the heavy artillery, musketry, and bayonet. 

At two o'clock on the afternoon of the 20th of Septem- 
ber, Brigadier-General Worth, who had been ordered " to 
turn the hill of the Bishop's palace, to occupy a position 
on the Saltillo road, and to carry the enemy's works in 
that quarter where practicable,"* took up his march at the 
head of his division and five hundred Texan cavalry under 
Colonel Hays. The besieged, perceiving this movement, 
immediately reinforced their troops in the Bishop's palace 
and adjoining height, and Taylor, in the hope of diverting 
their attention from Worth, displayed his whole force in 
front of the town, where they remained until the approach 
of night. The second division advanced to a point just 
beyond the range of the enemy's guns, and laid there dur- 
ing the evening upon their arms. During the night, a 
battery of two twenty-four pounder howitzers and a ten 
inch mortar, which composed the siege train, were placed 

* General Taylor's Dispatch, Oct. 8th, 1846. 



394 SEVERE CONTEST. 

to bear upon the citadel, which was the principal defence 
on the northern side of the place. 

On the morning of the 21st, Twigg's division and the 
volunteers under Butler approached the town, supported 
by the flying artillery of eight light field-pieces. The four 
companies of dragoons under Lieutenant- Colonel May, and 
Colonel Woods' regiment of Texan cavalry, were directed 
to the right, as a support to General Worth ; while a force 
of six hundred and forty-one men, sustained by Captain 
Bragg's battery, were sent forward under Lieutenant-Colonel 
Garland, to make a demonstration on the lower part of the 
town. Butler's division remained in rear of the howitzers 
and mortar, which were now throwing an effective fire 
into the citadel, which was steadily answered by the Mexi- 
can ordnance. 

In obedience to his instructions, Garland moved onward 
to the point of attack designated by Major Mansfield, who 
accompanied the column ; as they advanced, the enemy 
opened a fire upon the line from a redoubt in front, and 
another from the principal fort. Marching rapidly on ward, 
they soon entered the town, and took a position in rear of 
the hostile battery, under a heavy discharge of small arms, 
which was poured into their ranks from behind a barricade 
thrown across the narrow street. 

Bragg's artillery was then brought up, and one gun was 
placed so as to rake the avenue ; but its shot produced no 
effect upon the well-constructed defences; this being the 
case, the cannon were ordered to the rear, and the infantry 
to press forward. Captain Backus had succeeded in get- 
ting possession of a house, from the roof of which his 
company kept up a galling discharge into the party which 
manned the redoubt, annoying them excessively all the 
while, and diverting their attention from the movements 
in front. The main body of Garland's command having 
suffered severely, now fell back to reform, and prepare for 
another struggle. 



GARLAND'S SECOND CHARGE. 395 

At this crisis, General Taylor ordered the fourth infan- 
try and three regiments of volunteers to march at once 
upon the heavy battery, which was pouring a continuous 
fire from five pieces of cannon. The Mississippi and 
Tennessee troops, preceded by three companies of the 
fourth, advanced against the work, while the Ohio regi- 
ment under General Butler entered the town to the right. 
The advance of the fourth was received by so destructive 
a discharge, that one-third of the officers and men were 
instantly killed or disabled; they were compelled to retire 
until reinforced. The Tennessee and Mississippi corps un- 
der General Quitman pushed onward, and with the aid of 
Captain Backus, whose men still occupied the roof of the 
house in the rear of the redoubt, he captured it in gallant 
style, taking five pieces of ordnance, a large quantity of 
ammunition, and several Mexican officers and men pri- 
soners.* 

To the left of the first battery was another, against 
which the Ohio regiment now advanced; but such was its 
strength, and the severity of the fire which fianked its ap- 
proach, that a retrogade movement was deemed prudent ; 
its commander, General Butler, having been wounded, was 
now compelled to quit the field, — the regiment, therefore, 
was withdrawn from the town. The guns of the first 
battery were turned against the second redoubt beyond ; 
an incessant firing was kept up upon the Americans dur- 
ing this time by the latter, and the enemy in the citadel; 
to answer which the howitzers were brought up and placed 
to bear upon the farthest work. A division composed of 
portions of several regular regiments and the Baltimore 
battalion, was now sent to reinforce Colonel Garland, 
who was ordered to advance again, and carry the redoubt 
with the bayonet. In the effort to execute this command, 
the troops passed several trenched and barricaded streets, 

* General Taylor's Dispatch, Oct, 9th, 1846. 



396 CAPTURE OF THE HEIGHTS. 

raked by cannon and musketry; exposed to a galling fire, 
the party endeavored to reach the rear of the battery, but 
unfortunately came upon a bridge, the other extremity of 
which was defended by two pieces of artillery, which 
checked their advance in that direction. The infantry 
maintained their position here against the most fearful 
odds, notwithstanding the enemy's attempt to dislodge 
them, until their ammunition began to fail, when they re- 
tired in good order.* 

While these events were progressing in the interior of 
the town, several squadrons of Mexican cavalry deployed 
into the plain, under cover of the citadel. Captain Bragg 
opened a fire upon them with his light battery, and after a 
few rounds forced them to retreat; previous to this, the 
lancers had charged upon the Tennessee and Ohio line, 
and had been repulsed w^ith loss. A third demonstration 
of the same kind, made upon the opposite side of the San 
Juan, had been dispersed by Ridgely's flying artilleiy. 
In the mean time, General Worth's division, supported by 
the Texan cavalry and May's dragoons, under the com- 
mand of General Henderson, had early in the morning 
advanced upon the Mexican batteries, and had defeated 
their troops with considerable loss ; after a sharp conflict, 
he carried three of their fortified positions by storm, and 
succeeded in reaching the Saltillo road, thus cutting off* 
the enemy's communication with the interior. From this 
point, the two heights south of the road M'-ere talcen in suc- 
cession, and a gun found on one of them was immediately 
turned upon the Bishop's palace, which was the only work 
which remained in the possession of the besieged in rear 
of the city. 

At night-fall, General Taylor ordered the troops com- 
posing Twigg's and Butler's divisions back to the camp at 
the Springs, except Ridgely's artillery, a battalion of Ken- 

* Lieutenant-Colonel Garland's Report to Brigadier-General Twiggs. 



AMERICANS ENTER MONTEREY. 897 

tucky volunteers, and the regular infantry, which remained 
to guard the works under the command of Lieutenant-Col. 
Garland ; Worth's division bivouacked on the Saltillo road. 
At dawn of day on the 22d, the energetic chief of the second 
division was on the alert, and carried the height overlook- 
ing the Bishop's palace, which was also taken about one 
o'clock, and its cannon turned upon the flying foe, who 
were compelled to abandon the cemetery below which they 
had fortified. The defences on that side of the city were 
thus converted into so many points of attack, from which 
a destructive fire was opened upon the town. The guns 
of the citadel continued to pour forth their contents upon 
the parties of the besiegers who were exposed in front, 
and upon the redoubt now occupied by the Americans, 
which had been captured the day before. But no move- 
ment of importance was made on the northern part of the 
town during the 22d, both parties confining themselves to 
a distant cannonading. 

On the morning of the 23d, it was discovered that the 
enemy had evacuated nearly all of his works in the lower 
part of the city. General Taylor immediately sent instruc- 
tions to General Quitman to enter the place, if he deemed 
it advisable; at the same time, ordering up the other por- 
tion of the first division as a support. The latter officer 
advanced with a part of his brigade toward the plaza of 
Monterey, and being reinforced by Henderson's Texan 
riflemen, who had dismounted, and were now in their ele- 
ment, a new — but not an entirely untried — system of as- 
sault was adopted. Entering the stone houses on the 
skirts of the city, where they were sheltered from the 
enemy's fire, the assailants dug through the w^alls of the 
houses,* and forced their way in this manner from house 

* This mode of assault had been practiced by the Texans as early as 
1835, when General Cos was besieged at Bexar; on that occasion, the 
Texans forced their way within gun-shot of the enemy, digging a pas- 



398 THE MEXICANS SEND A FLAG TO TAYLOR. 

to house and square to square, until they reached a street 
but a short distance from the plaza, where the Mexican 
troops had been driven. 

Bragg's artillery had also entered the place, and support- 
ed by the third infantry did good execution on the buildings 
in the direction of the square. Ampudia had been forced to 
withdraw his troops from the works on the upper part of the 
city, where Worth's division had succeeded in gaining a po- 
sition within no great distance of the plaza. The mortar 
having been sent to this general early in the day, he plant- 
ed it in the cemetery, and committed great havoc M^ith the 
shell thrown into the centre of the town. Such was the 
injury sustained by the besieged, that the Mexican officers 
requested Ampudia to offer terms to the assailants, as the 
only mode of saving the lives of the troops, and the city 
from destruction;* the damage already received by the 
garrison had disheartened them, Mobile the rapid progress 
made by the attacking parties, through the walls of the 
houses, filled them with astonishment. The inhabitants 
also joined in this request, and Ampudia, considering that 
the only way left him to make an impression on the be- 
siegers was by the bayonet — a weapon almost useless in 
the hands of a Mexican soldier — was not indisposed to 
yield to the combined solicitations of the civil and military 
chiefs. 

At noon, on the 23d, while the several forces were hotly 
engaged. General Taylor received a flag from the town, 
the bearer of which delivered to him a communication from 
Don Francisco de P. Morales, the governor of the depart- 
ment of Nueva Leon, requesting him to allow the resident 
families to remove from the scene of the conflict, M'hich 
was every moment becoming more fierce and sanguinary. 

sage from house to house, while the hostile shot passed harmlessly on- 
ward, or rebounded from the stone walls. 

•}• General Ampudia's Dispatch, September 25th, 1846. 




STORMING OF MONTEREY.— PLAN OF OPERATIONS. 



A, American Battery. 

B, Cathedral Fort, or Citadel. 
C Bishop's Palace, 

D, Heights above it. 

E,F. Forts opposite side of the River. 



G, First Fort. 

H, Second Fort. 

K, Third Fort— covering the Cadaireta Road 

L, Main Plaza. 

M, Cemetery. 



AMPUDIA PROPOSES TO SURRENDER. 401 

The American commander regarding this as an evidence 
of the enemy's weakness, deemed it his duty to refuse this 
demand, as it was well known that a great portion of the 
women and children had retired from the place before the 
siege began. The contest was continued during the re- 
mainder of the day, both parties firing steadily all the time; 
the Mexicans from the citadel and plaza, and their adver- 
saries from several different points, 

Ampudia, conceiving that it would be useless to hold 
out against a foe who had already taken a large portion 
of the city, wisely resolved to yield while it was yet time 
to obtain honorable terms; although it was still in his 
power to make a desperate defence, and to sell the occu- 
pation of Monterey at a price which would more than 
compensate for its surrender. Urged by these considera- 
tions, Ampudia addressed a communication to the American 
leader, at nine o'clock, P. M., on the night of the 23d, which 
the latter received by the hands of Colonel Moreno, early 
on the following morning. The communication was as 
follows : 

" General : As I have made all the defence of which I believe 
this city capable, I have fulfilled my obligation, and done all re- 
quired by that military honor which, to a certain degree, is common 
to all the armies of the civilized world. And as a continuation of 
the defence would only bring upon the population distresses to 
which they have already been subjected by the evils consequent 
upon war, and believing that the American government will appre- 
ciate those sentiments, I propose to your excellency to evacuate the 
city and citadel, taking with me the personel and materiel of war 
which is left ; and under the assurance that no prosecution shall be 
undertaken against the citizens who have taken part in the defence." 

To this General Taylor replied : 

" In answer to your proposition to evacuate the city and fort 

with all the personel and materiel of war, I have to state that my 

duty compels me to decline acceding to it. A complete surrender 

of the town and garrison, the latter as prisoners of war, is now de- 

26 



402 COMMISSIONERS APPOINTED. 

manded. But such surrender will be upon terms ; and the gallant 
defence of the place, creditable alike to the Mexican troops and na- 
tion, will prompt me to make those terms as liberal as possible. 
The garrison will be allowed, at your option, after laying down its 
arms, to retire to the interior, on condition of not serving again dur- 
ing the war, or until regularly exchanged. I need hardly say that 
the rights of non-combatants will be respected." 

An answer to this demand was required by twelve 
o'clock that day; before that hour General Ampudia sig- 
nified a desire for a personal interview with the com- 
mander-in-chief, for the purpose of making some final 
arrangement. This being assented to, a conference was 
held by the two Generals ; during which Ampudia endea- 
vored to conceal his feelings under a show of bravado. 
Assuming a confident air, he told his adversary that, 
although his forces, had suffered, he was in no way strait- 
ened, and reiterated his demand of being allowed to depart 
with his army unmolested. General Taylor refused ; and, 
becoming impatient, exclaimed: " Sir, I hold your army in 
the hollow of my hand, and you know it; the conference 
is closed. In thirty minutes you shall hear from my bat- 
teries." 

This decisive declaration had the desired effect, and 
commissioners were immediately appointed on both sides, 
to draw up the articles of agreement regulating the with- 
drawal of the Mexican troops, and a suspension of 
hostilities, until the parties should hear from their respec- 
tive governments. General Taylor appointed for this 
responsible service Brigadier- General Worth, Governor 
Henderson, of Texas, and Colonel Jefferson Davis, of the 
Mississippi corps of riflemen. Ampudia named General 
Tomas Requena, of the artiller}^, Don Manuel M. Llano, 
and General Ortega, as commissioners upon the part of 
Mexico ; all of whom were honorable, intelligent men, and 
reputable commanders, who were acquainted with their 
duty, and performed it to the best of their ability. 



TERMS OF THE SURRENDER. 403 

In the afternoon, the officers entered upon their duties, 
and finally agreed upon the following terms : 

"Article 1. As the legitimate result of the operations before this 
place, and the present position of the contending armies, it is agreed 
that the city, the fortifications, cannon, the munitions of war, and all 
other public property, with the undermentioned exceptions, be sur- 
rendered to the commanding General of the United States' forces now 
at Monterey. 

" Art. 2. That the Mexican forces be allowed to retain the fol- 
lowing arms, to wit : the commissioned officers their side-arms, the 
infantry their arms and accoutrements, the cavalry their arms and 
accoutrements, and the artillery one field battery, not to exceed six 
pieces, with twenty-one rounds of ammunition. 

" Art. 3. That the Mexican armed forces retire, within seven 
days from this date, beyond the line formed by the pass of the Rin- 
conada, the city of Linares, and San Fernando de Presas. 

"Art. 4. That the citadel of Monterey be evacuated by the 
Mexican and occupied by the American forces to-morrow morning 
at ten o'clock. 

" Art. 5. To avoid collision and for mutual convenience, that the 
troops of the United States will not occupy the city until the Mexi- 
can forces have withdrawn, except for hospital and storage purposes. 

" Art. 6. That the forces of the United States will not advance 
beyond the line specified in the 3d article before the expiration of 
eight weeks, or until the orders or instructions of the respective 
governments can be received. 

" Art. 7. That the public property to be delivered shall be turned 
over and received by officers appointed by the commanding generals 
of the two armies. 

"Art. 8. That all doubts as to the meaning of any of the pre- 
ceding articles shall be solved by an equitable construction, and on 
principles of liberality to the retiring army. 

" Art. 9. That the Mexican flag, when struck at the citadel, may 
be saluted by its own battery. 

"Done at Monterey, September 24, 1846." 

W. J. ^VORTH, Brigadier-General United States' Army. 
J. PINKNEY HENDERSON, Major-Gen. Cora. Texan Volunteers. 
JEFF. DAVIS, Colonel Mississippi Riflemen. 
MANUEL M. LLANO. T. REQUENA. ORTEGA, 

Approved : Z. TAYLOR, Major-General U. S. A. Commanding. 

PEDRO AMPUDIA. 



404 CONDITION OF THE AMERICAN ARMY. 

These terms, which were alike honorable to the brave 
and distinguished officers on both sides, were fortunately 
approved by the commanding Generals of the respective 
forces, and Monterey ceased to be under the rule of the 
enemy. The gallant manner in which the place had been 
defended, and the fact that a recent change of government 
in Mexico, believed to be favorable to the interests of 
peace, had occurred, induced the American leader to con- 
cur with the commission, although the terms were less 
rigorous than those first imposed.* Had he acted other- 
wise, the probability is, that much blood would have been 
shed in the attempt to hold the city, which was untenable 
so long as the citadel remained in the hands of the Mexi- 
cans. To reduce that stronghold, would have cost the 
lives of hundreds ; for it would have been necessary to 
take it by storm, there being but one mortar in the camp, 
and no entrenching implements essential for its reduction 
in the ordinary way. Moreover, the army was at a great 
distance from its supplies, and too inadequately supplied 
with the means of transportation to pursue the enemy, 
had he chosen to fly, which he could have done at any 
moment. It was also the opinion of the American com- 
missioners, and of General Taylor, that the terms would 
meet the approbation of their government, liberal as they 
were.t 

The American army at the time of the surrender had 
not more than ten days' provisions ; they were nearly a 
hundred and eighty miles from the depots on the Rio 
Grande, and had but a small number of wagons necessary 
to transport the supplies through the mountain passes. 
The considerations of humanity ^vere not lost sight of by 
the commissioners and the commanding General, and out- 

* Taylor's Dispatch, September 25th, 1846. 

f Vide the letters of Generals Worth, Henderson, and Colonel Davis, 
on this subject. 



AMERICAN LOSS AT MONTEREY. 405 

weighed in the mind of the latter personage the possible 
advantages which might be obtained by the continuance 
of the struggle. In his conference with Ampudia, he was 
informed by him, that his object in requesting the interview 
was to avoid the shedding of any more blood; and that 
General Santa Anna, having returned to his country and 
to power, had declared himself in favor of peace.* Be- 
lieving this to be so, the American commander, who was 
not unaware of the overtures which his government had 
made to Mexico, was the more readily induced to approve 
of the terms of capitulation. 

The Mexican army evacuated the town and defences 
within the specified time, and the 1st division under Worth 
entered and took possession of it. Ampudia retired be- 
yond the pass of Rinconada, where he did not remain, but 
continued his march to Saltillo seventy-five miles distant. 
When the victors entered the captured city, they were 
surprised at its strength, and the efforts which had been 
made to repel their advance. In the cathedral, which had 
been converted by the besieged into a magazine, was an 
immense quantity of powder, which had been exposed to 
the shells thrown toward the conspicuous building in 
which it was stored. Had this mass of ammunition been 
set fire to by the bombs, the destruction which would have 
inevitably followed its explosion would have been tremen- 
dous, not only among the belligerents, but among the 
inhabitants — the women, children, and non-combatants, 
who yet remained in the place. 

The American loss during the siege of Monterey, was 
one hundred and twenty killed, and three hundred and 
sixty-eight wounded.f The Mexican loss was never as- 
certained; it was estimated at some one or two thousand; 
the hospitals were found filled with their wounded, who 



* See General Taylor's Dispatch, November 8th, 1846. 
t Ibid. Oct. 9th. 



406 PROPRIETY OF TAYLOR'S COURSE. 

were left to the care of the invaders.* Among those killed 
in the army of occupation, were several valuable officers. 
Major Barbour, Captains Field, Morris, and Gillespie, 
Lieutenants Woods and Hazlett, and Colonel Watson of 
the Baltimore battalion, fell at the head of their men upon 
the field of battle. The American forces remained at 
Monterey, waiting for the arrival of supplies, and the ve- 
hicles and animals necessary for their transportation. 

It was undoubtedly an act of wisdom upon the part 
of the commanding General to accept of the armistice un- 
der these circumstances, inasmuch as it prevented the 
enemy from attacking his troops, who could not have 
moved in force in any direction, for the reasons above re- 
ferred to.f Possibly, had hostilities been continued, the 
enemy, under Santa Anna, might have advanced from San 
Luis Potosi, and succeeded in driving the diminished forces 
of his adversary into the town of Monterey, where, from the 
want of food, if not from the overwhelming numbers of the 
assailants, the six thousand men under Taylor would have 
been compelled to yield as prisoners of war. Had this 
happened, the juresizg'e of victory, so essential to the success 
of warlike enterprises, would have been broken; and dis- 
honor, shame, and defeat would have crowned the march 
into Mexico. 

* Ampudia's Manifesto, Sept. 26th, 1846. 

f General Taylor's Dispatch, October 9th, 1846. 



CHAPTER VI. 

Re-establishment of the Federal Constitution — Overtures of the United 
States for peace — Santa Anna invited to assume the Supreme Power 
— His Reply — His reception at the Capital — His efforts to raise an 
Army — Organization of the Mexican Army — Regulars and Militia — 
Ranchero Cavalry — Santa Anna arrives at San Luis — Ampudia 
evacuates Saltillo — General Worth advances to Saltillo — March of 
Wool's Division — He is compelled to alter his course at Santa Rosa — 
Monclova — Parras — The Mexicans abandon Tampico — Its occupa- 
tion by the Americans — Commodore Perry attacks Tobasco — March 
to Victoria — Retreat of the Mexicans — Occupation of the City — 
Distress of the Mexican Government — Circular to the several States. 

The republican party having once more obtained the 
ascendency in. Mexico, the friends of rational freedom 
throughout the republic rallied to the support of the new- 
born dynasty, and the distinguished chief who was identi- 
fied with the late triumphant revolution. On the 22d of 
August, the Supreme Executive issued a decree, proclaim- 
ing the re -establishment of the constitution of 1824, the 
dissolution of the departmental assemblies, and the reor- 
ganization of the several departments into sovereign, 
independent states. Previous to this, General Salas had 
summoned a congress to meet at the capital on the 6th 
day of the ensuing December; a circular had also been 
addressed to the different governors of the departments, 
commanding them to prevent any attempts that might be 
made by public functionaries to interfere in the election of 
representatives; on the contrary, the citizens were to be 

(407) 



408 OVERTURES FOR PEACE BY UNITED STATES. 

permitted to exercise the most absolute and uncontrolled 
liberty in electing such persons as they deemed worthy of 
their confidence. If any one was found guilty of inter- 
fering in this matter, they were to be punished, whatever 
his rank or station, with a fine of not less than one hun- 
dred, and not more than five hundred dollars; or if the 
transgression merited still greater severity, the author was 
to be dealt with in conformity with the laws of the land.* 

The promulgation of these decrees produced a very 
beneficial effect upon the minds of the intelligent classes 
of the people, who united to quell the turbulent spirit 
which animated the lower orders ; and if their efforts were 
not entirely successful, neither were they altogether use- 
less. It was toward Santa Anna, however, that all eyes 
were tm'ned, as upon some mighty magician, who had 
been mysteriously vested with the power of removing the 
burthens under which the nation had been struggling for 
so many years. 

The President of the northern confederacy — who, if he 
had in any way been instrumental in bringing on the war, 
was now certainly anxious to see its close — had, in the 
mean time, tendered to Mexico more than once the alter- 
native of an honorable peace, or the prosecution of a 
contest which would eventually despoil her of the means 
of national independence. But all attempts at reconcilia- 
tion had been stubbornly rejected by Paredes, who was 
bent upon continuing the hostilities he had himself ini- 
tiated, by sending Arista across the Del Norte. After the 
return of Santa Anna, these negotiations were renewed 
with the fond hope that the chief who had been allowed 
to pass unquestioned through the hostile fleet, w^ould, out 
of gratitude, remember the favor he had received at the 
hands of his country's foe. But no such feeling was 

* Circular of the INIiiiister of Relations to the Governors of the diffe- 
;rent departments, August 12th, 18-46. 



SANTA ANNA ACCEPTS SALAS'S INVITATION. 409 

manifest; and the Senor Rejon, in his reply to the American 
secretary, declined to assume the responsibility of acting 
in so important an affair without the concurrence of the 
constituent Congress, before which the overtures of the 
United States would be presented in the coming Decem- 
ber; it being the fixed determination of the government 
of Mexico to do nothing of moment without consulting 
the wishes of the people through their representatives. 

About the middle of September, Santa Anna yielded to 
the solicitations of Salas and his associates, and left the 
retirement of his hacienda to engage once again in the 
thankless duties of public life. Arriving at the village of 
Ayotla, twenty miles from the capital, on the 14th of Sep- 
tember, he received a communication through General 
Almonte, from the provisional government, inviting him 
to assume the supreme executive power on the following 
day, which being the anniversary of that upon which 
Hidalgo had raised the " glorious cry at Dolores," had 
been selected to witness the celebration of the re-estab- 
ment of the federal constitution, and the entree of the 
illustrious chief into the capital. 

To this flattering mark of respect Santa Anna replied, 
in an eloquent and patriotic manner, that he was pene- 
trated with the deepest gratitude to find that his arrival 
at the city would be made to contribute to the solemnities 
of so great an occasion. That he had been called to com- 
mand the armies of the republic by the voice of his fellow- 
citizens when he was living in exile; that he saw his 
country surrounded by imminent dangers, and obeyed the 
mandate. " I now see a terrible contest with a perfidious 
and daring enemy irhpending over her, in which the Mexi- 
can republic must reconquer the insignia of her glory, and 
a fortunate peace if victorious, or disappear from the face 
of the earth if so unhappy as to be defeated."* After this 

* The whole of this letter will be found in the Appendix, XX. 



410 HIS RECEPTION AT THE CAPITAL 

declaration, which may be regarded as prophetic, and Le 
that lives to the close of this century may witness its fulfill- 
ment, he continued : " I go at the head of the Mexican army 
— an army, the offspring of a free people ; and I Mdll fulfill 
my utmost duty in opposing the enemies of my country. 
Your excellency will perceive how great an error I should 
commit in assuming the supreme magistracy when my 
duties call me to the field ; I should disgrace myself, if, 
when called to the post of danger, I should spring to that 
of power. The single motive of my heart is to offer to my 
compatriots the sacrifice of the blood which yet runs in 
my veins." 

At noonday, on the 15th of September, the general-in- 
chief entered the city of the Montezumas, and was received 
by its inhabitants and those of the surrounding country in 
the most enthusiastic manner; he was hailed as their de- 
liverer, who was returning in triumph from exile to the 
scene of his glory. Attended by a brilliant escort, and 
saluted by the swelling strains of martial music, the roar 
of ordnance, and vivas of the multitude, who eagerly pressed 
around him on all sides to obtain a view of his person, 
he crossed the great square through a passage lined with 
troops, and entered the portal of the national palace. 
He was greeted there by General Salas and the members 
of the government, ad interim, who regarding him as the 
only man who could terminate the sad divisions existing 
between the army and the people, hoped to obtain by his 
efforts the protection from the former which the condition 
of the latter demanded. 

That night, the city was illuminated, the sky was lit 
up with innumerable rockets, and music, mirth, and revelry 
filled every quarter of the capital ; the people forgot their 
misfortunes, the soldiery the late reverses which had sul- 
lied the lustre of the Mexican arms, and even the rabble, 
who had visited upon his head every malediction, now 
sought his smile by cringing before him for whose blood 



ORGANIZATION OF THE MEXICAN ARMY. 411 

they had so recently clamored. The nation is saved ! was 
the universal ciy ; Santa Anna has returned, — Viva la 
General, viva la Repvblica, rmieran los Americanos^ mucran los 
usurpadores ! resounded throughout the land, from the hot 
plains of Yucatan to the cold regions of the northern Sierra, 
startling the people from their apathy, and filling all hearts 
with hope and joyous anticipations of victory and revenge. 

Without delay, the commander-in-chief and the provi- 
sional government, combining their energies, proceeded to 
raise, arm, and muster an army, powerful enough to meet 
the advancing columns of the north. Requisitions were 
immediately sent into every province for a certain number 
of men, amounting in the aggregate to thirty thousand, 
who were to be enrolled into the service as soon as pos- 
sible. In order to facilitate the arming and equipping of 
this force, all duties upon military stores and munitions of 
wax were declared to be suspended until further notice. 
By this wise arrangement, the Mexicans obtained a large 
supply of the material necessary to carry on their defensive 
operations, as vessels from abroad were constantly run- 
ning the blockade, at Vera Cruz, Alvarado, Campeachy, 
and Tobasco. It may have been, that these vessels were 
allowed to pass, as their freight might furnish the enemy 
with the means of destroying each other during the exis- 
tence of the " intestine divisions" which it was confidently 
believed would follow the return of Santa Anna. The re- 
quisitions of the supreme authorities were complied with 
in the larger cities and towns with alacrity, and a formi- 
dable number of men were soon placed at the disposal of 
-the commanding-general. 

The ordinary strength of the Mexican army was, ac- 
cording to the muster-rolls of the war office, about fifty 
thousand rank and file, a very large proportion being 
officers. The organization of the army was as follows : — 
artillery — three brigades of foot, one mounted, and five 
additional companies; engineer corps — one battalion of 



412 OFFICERS IN COMMAND. 

sappers, which had usually been stationed at Matamoras, 
and one company occupying the citadel of Mexico ; eight 
regiments of the line, or permanent infantry, of two bat- 
talions each, composed of eight companies, each company 
of one hundred and twelve officers and men ; eight regi- 
ments of the line, or permanent cavalry, of two squadrons, 
each composed of two companies of three hundred and 
thirty-eight men and officers. In addition to the regular 
force, was the national militia, or active troops, as they 
were designated, who were liable to be called into service 
at any time, when they received pay. Of these, there 
were nine regiments of infantry, numbering sixteen thou- 
sand one hundred and twenty-eight men and officers ; six 
regiments of cavalry, of four squadrons, each squadron of 
two companies. 

This force was commanded by fourteen generals of 
division, twenty-six generals of brigade, one director- 
general of artillery, and, lastly, by the general-in-chief, 
whose staff consisted of a great number of colonels, lieu- 
tenant-colonels, adjutants, and lieutenants. It was seldom, 
however, that the actual number of men in active service 
exceeded twenty thousand, who were stationed at Vera 
Cruz, San Luis, Guadalaxara, the capital, and at various 
other points. There were also in the different presidios 
some twenty companies of cavalry, which had of late been 
engaged in a border warfare with the Texans. To these 
again may be added the ranchero cavalry of the north- 
eastern provinces, which, under the partisan leaders 
Canales and Carabajal, fought at Palo Alto and Resaca, 
and subsequently hung on the rear of the invading army, 
acting as spies, pickets, and scouts; they were excellent 
light horsemen, but from the want of discipline, and the 
habit of moving according to their own wills, they were 
of but little service in a general engagement, lacking both 
firmness and courage. They were generally armed with 
a long lance, and sometimes with a sword and carbine; 



CHARACTER OF THE MEXICAN TROOPS. 413 

the lasso, made of horse-hair or bull's-hide, forms an indis- 
pensable part of the equipage of these banditti and 
assassins, who have commited more depredations upon 
the American troops than all the armies of Mexico. 
Officers and men have been taken when unarmed and 
defenceless, and slaughtered in the most cruel and barbar- 
ous manner by these cowardly auxiliaries, whose only 
object is plunder, and who are despised even by their own 
countrymen as disloyal, treacherous, and untrusty. 

The usual mode of raising an army in Mexico is to 
send out a party of veterans, who seize upon a certain 
number of half-naked Indians among the mountains, or in 
the agricultural districts; these recruits are fastened to a 
long chain, and driven in this fashion to the different de- 
pots, where they are clothed, armed, drilled, and instructed 
in the use of arms. "When men are scarce, the prisons are 
emptied of their vile contents, and the worst villains in 
the republic are called upon to volunteer for a specified 
term in proportion to the number of years for which they 
have been sentenced for punishment.* The morale of such 
an army, composed of this kind of material, must be, in the 
nature of things, extremely bad; desertion, insubordination, 
and licentiousness, pervade the ranks. The Mexican ra- 
pidly degenerates when he becomes a soldier, and if he 
was not a robber before he entered the service, he gene- 
rally becomes one when he leaves it. 

There is, however, one class of the troops who are in a 
measure free from these vices — old veterans who served in 
the Spanish line before the revolution, ancient followers of 
Santa Anna, Victoria, and Guerrero, who have lived so 
long in the barracks and camp, that it has become their 
home. These men never desert or mutiny, unless their 
pay is deferred, when they readily join in the pronuncia- 
mento which invariably follows an exhausted treasury. 

* Thompson, Kendall, Meyer, M. Duflot de Mofras. 



414 SANTA ANNA RAISES ADDITIONAL FORCES. 

Santa Anna was always a favorite with them, as he was 
careful to retain their good opinion by providing for their 
wants. 

By the exercise of incessant labor, constant wakeful- 
ness, and invincible perseverance, the government suc- 
ceeded in mustering an army, collecting means for its 
transportation to San Luis Potosi, and furnishing it with 
the supplies necessary for its existence. In addition to 
the regular force the militia were reorganized, and called 
out to serve in the garrisons, and to act as a reserve, if 
needed. While these preparations were going on, the 
news of the capitulation of Monterey arrived at the capital, 
and stimulated the authorities in their noble efforts to 
defend the country. Yet the intelligence was entirely 
unexpected, as the town was known to be stronger than 
any other place in Mexico, to be well fortified by art, and 
from its position among the mountains of the Sierra Madre, 
difficult to reach and hard to captm*e ; it was indeed re- 
garded as the key to the interior, which, once lost, would 
enable the enemy to throw forward his columns at liis 
convenience. Yet when the particulars of the siege were 
known, the censure which had been heaped upon the brave 
defenders of the place were changed into praise, and Am- 
pudia was received as a good servant of the republic, and 
an able general, by the commander-in-chief. The resist- 
less onset of the Americans upon the batteries, the novel 
mode of advancing through the walls of the houses, and 
the destruction caused by the artillery, were deemed suffi- 
cient to justify the surrender of the town. 

Santa Anna having at last concentrated a considerable 
force at San Luis, proceeded there in person, and reached 
that place on the 8th of October. Shortly afterwards, he 
was reinforced by the division of the north under Ampudia, 
whose rear-guard evacuated Saltillo on the 15th, and thus 
left it virtually in the hands of the invaders. The different 
portions of the corps d' armce assembled at San Luis were 



SANTA ANNA'S WANT OF FUNDS. 415 

subjected to a severe examination by the commanding- 
general, who broke up regiments and battalions, and 
reorganized them into new divisions. He also purged 
the army of such officers and men who had an evil repu- 
tation among their associates for licentiousness, rapacity, 
or cowardice. His exertions were indefatigable, and, 
occupied with but one great purpose, the Mexican leader 
never appeared to such advantage as when, struggling 
against a thousand difficulties, he was preparing to bring 
into the field an army — upon whose future deeds he had 
staked the destinies of his country. 

The new levies were, as soon as they joined the 
forces, put under the hands of the drill-masters, who spared 
neither oaths nor blows to bring them into that auto- 
maton-like condition characteristic of the trained soldier. 
The greatest difficulty experienced by Santa Anna was 
that resulting from the poverty of the government; he had 
material enough, but was sorely pressed for the supplies 
necessary to keep his troops together — for food they could 
not dispense with; and as it would consume some months 
before he could trust his recruits in a contest with the 
victors of Palo Alto and Monterey, he was placed in a 
very uncomfortable position. 

The acting Executive, General Salas, was devoted to 
the interests of the State ; so was Almonte, the minister 
of war, and his colleagues, Gomez Farias, Rejon, and La- 
fragna — all of whom were able statesmen, and worthy 
sons of the republic ; but from this source he could not ex- 
pect any other than temporary relief, as the provisional 
authorities had determined to do nothing until the meeting 
of Congress. In this dilemma, the energetic chief put his 
talents to the stretch, and for some weeks succeeded in 
furnishing his men with the means of subsistence. At a 
subsequent period, when his forces were almost in a state 
of starvation, Santa Anna pledged his own private pro- 
perty for the payment of provisions, which he distributed 



416 ABROGATION OF THE ARMISTICE. 

among the ranks of the destitute army with a liberal hand ; 
the act of a truly noble and patriotic spirit, which, chas- 
tened by time and adversity, fiung its vices to the winds, 
and blazed forth in its native splendor. No bad, corrupt 
heart could have been moved, under any circumstances, to 
do an action of this kind, — even by selfish ambition, the 
love of fame, or the hope of future reward. No such mo- 
tive could have influenced Santa Anna, who knew his 
countrymen too well to trust those who had countenanced 
the slaughter of so many distinguished patriots, with whom 
gratitude existed only in name. 

On the 13th of October, the American secretary of war 
instructed General Taylor to " give the requisite notice, that 
the armistice was to cease at once, and that each party 
was at liberty to resume and prosecute hostilities without 
restriction." In compliance with this order, the General 
dispatched Major Graham, on the 5th of November, to the 
enemy's lines with a communication, formally announcing 
the instructions he had received, and his determination of 
renewing the war by the 13th, feeling himself at perfect 
liberty to advance beyond Rinconada after that day. He 
also took this occasion to request of the Mexican leader 
the release of several prisoners, who had been captured 
and carried to San Luis. 

Santa Anna immediately replied, by readily acquiescing 
in the proposition to abrogate the armistice ; and stated, 
that he would willingly comply with General Taylor's 
demand, by releasing the captives, seven in number, who 
had been taken there for safe-keeping, directing the com- 
missary of his army to furnish the men with seventy 
dollars, to pay their expenses upon the road. 

In his letter, the American commander had remarked, 
that at the time he had entered into the convention with 
Ampudia, he had hoped that the terms in which it was 
conceived would open the way for an amicable and honor- 
able adjustment of the difficulties between the two coun- 



WORTH'S DIVISION MARCHES FOR SALTILLO. 417 

tries. In his answer of the 10th, Santa Anna said : — 
" Laying out of the question, as to whether that con- 
vention was the result of necessity, or of the noble 
sentiments now disclosed by you, I content myself with 
saying that, by the decision and spirit manifested by all 
Mexicans, you should banish every idea of peace, while a 
single North American, in arms, treads upon the soil of 
this republic."* 

The forces under General Taylor cantoned at Monterey 
and encamped in the neighboring woods of San Domingo, 
had in the interval been employed in strengthening the 
defences of the city — keeping open the line of coramunica 
tion between that point and Camargo, and transporting 
supplies from the Kio Grande. The country now occupied 
by the army could furnish nothing for its support but corn 
and beef, which were paid for in cash the moment they 
were delivered; this policy was, under the circumstances, 
the best that could be pursued, as it conciliated the inhabi- 
tants and facilitated the operations of the invaders. The 
task of fighting and beating the enemy was among the 
least of the difficulties the Americans had to encounter ; 
in a region so barren, they were compelled to regulate^ 
their movements by the quantity of supplies at their dis- 
posal.. General. Taylor had penetrated to Monterey with 
the same wagon-train with which he had left Corpus 
Christi seven months before, and he did not receive an ad- 
dition to these until the 2d of November .f 

On the 12th the second division, under General Worth,, 
consisting of eight companies of artillery, two regiments 
of infantry, and one company of volunteers, supported by 
Duncan's battery of eight pieces, took up the line of march 
for Saltillo sixty -five miles distant. On the 13th the 

* Vide Santa Anna's Letter to General Taylor, dated San Luis Potosi, 
November 10th, 1846. 

\. General Taylor's Dispatch, November 8th, 1846. 
27 



418 WOOL MARCHES FOR CHIHUAHUA. 

(Commander-in-chief followed with two squadrons of dra- 
goons. While advancing upon that point, the General 
was met by a messenger from Don Jose Marie de Aguirre, 
the newly elected governor of the State of Coahuila, who 
^placed in his hand a formal protest " against the govern- 
ment of the United States of the north, for the usurpation 
iof the territory occupied by their arms — for the outrages 
and damages which should accrue to the persons and pro- 
perty of the inhabitants of the defenceless towns — for 
the injuries the public interests may suffer — and for all 
the evils consequent upon the most unjustifiable invasion 
ever known to the world."* Having rid himself of this, 
which had, doubtless, weighed grievously upon his mind, 
the governor of Coahuila retired from the capital, which 
was immediately occupied by the second division, without 
opposition. By this movement, the route from the low 
country to the table lands above, as well as the passage 
to Monclova, was covered by the troops, who were also 
placed within reach of a fertile district, abounding in 
bread stuffs and forage. 

While Taylor was pushing forward his columns in this 
direction, Brigadier-General Wool left San Antonio de 
Bexar, in September, at the head of a force two thousand 
four hundred strong, composed of the Illinois, Arkansas, and 
Kentucky troops, which were commanded by colonels Yell, 
Hardin, Bissell, and Humphrey Marshall. A large portion 
ofthe.se were cavalry ; there was also a battalion of regu- 
lar artillery, and a train of six field-pieces accompanying 
the expedition. Crossing the great plains between Bexar 
and the Rio Grande, the column passed that river at the 
Presidio del Norte, and advanced in the direction of Chi- 
huahua, the designated point of attack. 

After suffering much from long and fatiguing marches 
through a strange and to them unknown region, the troops 

* Protest of the Governor of Coahuila, Saltillo, Nov. 16th, 1846. 



ARRIVAL OF WOOL AT MONCLOVA. 419 

reached Santa Rosa, where their progress was abruptly 
checked by the Sierra Gorda, a range of mountains which 
here rise to an altitude of nearly 4,000 feet above the 
level of the plain, without a single pass or defile leading 
over it.* The column was, therefore, compelled to 
turn to the southward in search of a road to Chihuahua. 
Skirting the entire base of the Sierra, its progress was slow 
and difficult, and it was not until the 29th of October it 
reached Monclova. 

As Wool approached, the prefect of the city issued a 
formal protest against the occupation of the country, after 
which he came out to the camp, attended by an escort of 
caballeros arrayed in the picturesque dress of the province, 
with ponderous spurs hanging to their heels, and gayly 
colored mantles from their shoulders ; mounted upon 
shovv^ animals the party made a dashing appearance. 
They were received courteously by the General, and during 
the month he remained in the vicinity of Monclova, no 
feeling of animosity was apparent in the intercourse mu- 
tually cultivated by the troops and the natives. At 
Parras, a few weeks later, a still more friendly feeling was 
visible, several sick soldiers were taken into the houses of 
some of the first people of the place and carefully nursed 
by tlie ladies of the family. 

At these places no robbery, or oppression of timorous 
defenceless inhabitants was permitted by the commanding 
officers; the provisions furnished to the army were 
promptly paid for, and in all respects the former were the 
gainers by the occupation of their territory by the Ameri- 
can forces. Never had this part of Coahuila been so well 
guarded against the prowling savage, or merciless bandit ; 
the roads were cleared of the last, and the fierce Indian of 
the wilderness fled at the sound of the cavalry bugles. 

* Vide the report of Captain Hughes, Topographical Engineer, Feb.. 
14th, 1847. 



420 PERRY TAKES POSSESSION OF TAMPICO. 

During this period men could travel from their haciendas 
to the city with some hope of returning safely, a feeling 
entirely unknown to them for some months previous. 

As there was no practicable route to Chihuahua from 
the east, except by the way of Parras, which would bring 
his column within a few leagues of Saltillo, Wool halted 
at Monclova until he received orders from General Taylor; 
inquiring, sensibly enough, " "What is to be gained by going 
to Chihuahua?" 

It was the policy of the United States, at this juncture, 
to take possession of as much of the Mexican territory as 
possible, in order that the Congress, before which the propo- 
sitions for a pacification were to be laid, would be more 
readily induced to accept of the proffered terms. In order 
to do this effectually an expedition was planned against 
Tampico and Vera Cruz ; the movement upon the former 
being intended as a feint to cover the design against the 
latter. 

The Mexican government, conscious of its inability to 
garrison and fortify the mouth of the Panuco, had with- 
drawn the few troops which had been stationed there, on 
the 27th of October, leaving the place in a defenceless 
condition. On the 14th of November, Commodore Perry, 
then commanding the naval forces in the Gulf, took pos- 
session of Tampico, and made a requisition for a sufficient 
number of men to hold the place. Toward the close of 
the month, several companies of regulars and volunteers 
with a supply of ordinance and munitions were safely 
landed at the town, and its defences being repaired and 
new works erected, it was soon placed in a state to bid 
defiance to any attack the enemy might make upon it. A 
few weeks before this. Commodore Perry had entered the 
river Tobasco with a squadron of six vessels, and ascend- 
ing it to the city of Tobasco, anchored opposite the town 
and summoned it to surrender, on the evening of the 25th 
of October. 



BOMBARDMENT OF TOBASCQ. 421 

The place was garrisoned by three hundred regular 
troops, and a large number of militia who had assembled 
at the approach of the hostile fleet. The Governor refused 
to give up the town, and Perry commenced the conflict by 
firing into the soldiers' quarters and the fort. Gne of the 
first shots striking the flag-staff", the Mexican colors fell 
to the ground, which for a time caused the assailants to 
believe that the city had surrendered. 

On the 26th the enemy opened a sharp fire of mus- 
ketry upon the ships, which was answered by the cannon 
of the latter, every discharge of which produced much 
injury upon the houses. The people of Tobasco urged 
the Governor to submit to their powerful adversary, but he 
sternly refused ; he, however, permitted them to raise a 
white flag and to send a communication to the fleet praying 
the Commodore to spare the town ; he replied by promis- 
ing to do so, observing that he only desired to fight the 
soldiers. A detachment of eighteen men having landed 
near the place they were attacked by a superior force, and 
after a brisk action of half-an-hour the Mexicans were 
driven back, the other party losing one man killed and two 
wounded. Lieutenant Morris was also mortally wounded 
while passing the enemy's fire, in an effort to communicate 
with those on shore. The cannonading from the vessels 
was now renewed with energy, and in the course of an 
hour Tobasco was nearly demolished ; the houses of the 
foreign residents and consuls being uninjured, as well as 
those which appeared to be occupied by non-combatants. 
The Governor answered the fire from a battery of four 
pieces, which however did no great execution. At midnight 
the squadi'on hoisted their anchors; as the ships dropped 
down the stream and passed the city, a broadside and a 
volley of musketry were poured into the streets, " sweeping 
them of every living thing." 

The object of the expedition had been to capture a 
number of vessels which had taken refuge in the river ; 



422 TAYLOR'S OPERATIONS. 

the prizes taken, consisting of one brig, two steamers, five 
schooners, one sloop and several smaller craft were, with 
the exception of one, which was burned, can-ied safely to 
Anton Lizardo, the rendezvous of the fleet on the coast of 
Vera Cruz. 

In order that the whole state of Tamaulipas should be 
under the control of the army. General Taylor ordered 
General Wool to abandon all idea of proceeding to Chi- 
huahua, and to advance with his column to Parras ; which 
movement was effected with such celerity and caution that 
Bonneville's battalion, which led the march, was often 
mistaken by the inhabitants for a party of those hostile 
savages who had so often desolated these beautiful 
regions. 

The next operation was against Victoria, the capital of 
Tamaulipas, which is situated between Monterey and 
Tampico ; in the vicinity of the former place. General Urrea 
was believed to be at the head of a division acting as a 
corps of observation. 

On the 17th, the different regiments designed for the 
occupation of Victoria formed a junction at Montemorelos, 
sixty-eight miles from Monterey; that evening an express 
arrived from Saltillo informing the commander-in-chief 
that Santa Anna was about to take advantage of the scat- 
tered condition of the troops at that crisis, by making a 
sudden attack upon the latter city, and upon the position 
of General Wool at Parras. This intelligence altered the 
original plan which had been laid down ; Quitman's bri- 
gade, supported by a field battery, was ordered to continue 
the route to Victoria, where it was expected that a division 
of volunteers under General Patterson, then on the march, 
would join them. Taylor himself retm'ned with the regu- 
lar troops to his old camp, and was hastening on to 
Worth's relief at Saltillo, when he learned from that officer 
that he had been reinforced by the early arrival of Wool's 



EFFORTS OF SANTA ANNA AND SALAS. 423 

column, and that the enemy, instead of advancing, had 
recalled some of his parties of observation. 

General Quitman's command arrived at Victoria on the 
29th of December ; there was in the town a body of fifteen 
hundred cavalry, which retreated as the invaders ap- 
proached, leaving them to take quiet possession of it 
without striking a blow in its defence, although from the 
careless manner in which the volunteers conducted them- 
selves, no better opportunity could have offered itself for 
an attack. The Mexicans fell back to Jaumave, on the 
road towards Tula, where a strong force under General 
Valencia was encamped. 

While these events were passing in the north, the Mexi- 
can government was straining every nerve to meet the exi- 
gencies of the times, which were every hour assuming a 
darker aspect. The energetic efforts of President Salas and 
Santa Anna had produced much good, the public spirit had 
been awakened, confidence had, in a measure, been restored 
between the nation and the supreme authorities, and a for- 
midable army had been brought into the field; but still 
more remained to be done, the public exchequer was 
empty, the ordinary channels through which the state 
derived its resources were closed, and could not be opened 
until the war should terminate ; never had Mexico been so 
impoverished since the conquest. 

Under these distressing circumstances the government 
resolved to make a last appeal to the several states com- 
posing the confederacy, to whom it had restored the bless- 
ings of civil liberty and equal laws, when they were about 
to be swept away by the machinations of the aristocratic 
and monarchical factions. Contributions of various sums 
had been furnished by some of the departments, but not in. 
amounts commensurate with their means, or the necessity 
of the demand. 

On the 27th of November, the Senor Lafragna, then 



424 EFFORTS TO AROUSE THE PEOPLE.. 

acting as minister of relations, addressed a circular to the 
governors of the states, calling upon them in the sacred 
name of their country to come to the aid of the adminis- 
tration and the army, for the hour had arrived which was 
to decide the future destiny of Mexico — her religion, her 
manners, language, even her very existence as a nation, 
hung upon the issue of the struggle she was then engaged 
in with the people of the north. Between glory and shame 
there was no mean to choose, the enemy must be driven 
from the country, or the generous race of the south must 
yield to the invader, who already occupied Tamaulipas, 
Nueva Leon, Santa Fe, Coahuila and the Californias, and 
was pushing his arms toward the interior as rapidly as 
circumstances would permit him. The Congress about to 
assemble could, if so disposed, make peace, but the Execu- 
tive had absolutely determined that the name of Mexico 
should be erased from the catalogue of nations by the 
edge of the American sword, before her infamy should be 
inscribed upon the face of a shameful treaty.* 

" That proud confederacy," continued the minister, 
"whose government insults, with its acts, the ashes of 
Washington; that population — which is composed in part 
of avaricious merchants, for whom all grand ideas, all 
generous thoughts are subordinate to self-interest; those 
pretended democratic states, who excommunicate all who 
have a single drop of the blood which the whites would 
consider distinct from their own, and who traffic unwor- 
thily in the creatures of God, are likewise risking their 
rexistence in this war — for they have in their bosom a 
■thousand conflicting elements." 

This appeal to the patriotism of the nation fell unno- 
ticed upon the ears of the people and the local authorities, 
who had positively nothing to give in the shape of money , 
the precious metals having been drawn from the country 

* See Appendix, XXI. 



WEALTH OF CHURCHES. 425 

by foreign creditors, the national mint was closed, and 
the late civil commotions and existing war had paralyzed 
the operations of the mining companies. The only gold 
and silver that was visible to the senses, was to be seen in 
the gorgeous cathedrals and chm^ches, where the priests 
who ministered at the altar dazzled the eyes of the multi- 
tude with the magnificent display of massive plate and 
jewels, which the piety of a former age had dedicated to 
holy uses. 



CHAPTER VII. 

Meeting of the Federal Congress — Election of Santa Anna and Gomez 
Farias — Rejection of the Pacific Overtures of the United States — 
Law confiscating the Property of the Church — Protest of the Clergy 

— Administration of Farias — Policy of the Clergy — Massacre of 
Governor Bent in New Mexico — Battles of Canada and El Embudo 

— Occupation of El Paso — Battle of Sacramento — California — 
Santa Anna's advance upon Saltillo — Capture of Major Gaines — 
The Pass of Angostura — Battle of Buena Vista — Retreat of the 
Mexicans — General Scott — Preparations for the reduction of Vera 
Cruz — Landing of the Americans — Investment, bombardment, and 
capture of the City and Castle. 

The Mexican Congress assembled at the capital in the 
early part of December, 1846, under the old constitution; 
it was composed of a better class of citizens than those 
who had formerly represented the nation in the halls of 
the national palace,, toward whom all men now gazed, in 
the hope that through their exertions the misfortunes 
which had lately fallen upon Mexico would be alleviated, 
and that she would emerge bright and glorious from the 
darkness which now spread over the land. 

The deputies, who had been elected by the people, 
were nearly all staunch republicans, men who had been 
distinguished for their persevering opposition to the cen- 
tral system, and who had suffered, in consequence, perse- 
cution, and much injur}^, from the different administrations 
which had recently cursed the country. Bj^ the death of 
the archbishop, and the fall of Paredes, who had been 
( 426 ) 



ELECTION OF SANTA ANNA AND FARIAS. 427 

permitted to retire from the republic, the monarchical 
faction had been crushed; and those leaders who had 
espoused its principles had been taught to respect the will 
of the nation as the supreme law, and they carried with 
them into the obscurity of private life, to which they had 
been compelled to retire, the humiliating recollection of 
having, in attempting the destruction of liberty, re-estab- 
lished, instead of a monarchy, a constitutional democracy. 

One of the most important duties which devolved upon 
Congress, was that of appointing a chief magistrate, into 
whose hands the executive power could be safely entrusted. 
The friends of Santa Anna advocated his claims to that 
dignity, in the warmest manner; while those of Gomez 
Farias boldly asserted that he had acquired a right to the 
office by his long and disinterested exertions in behalf of 
the sacred principles of freedom ; General Salas, also, had 
his partisans, who, referring with pride to the events of 
the last few months, demanded of their colleagues that he 
should be continued in the high station he had so worthily 
occupied since the late revolution. 

After a great deal of unnecessary delay, the question 
was disposed of by Santa Anna being elected Provisional 
President, and Gomez Farias Vice-President of the republic, 
on the 23d of December. Farias was to perform the duties 
of the Executive department, while the former was to re- 
main at the head of the army, until the invaders had been 
driven from the Mexican territory, when he would assume 
his position at the head of the government. In his letter 
to the minister of relations, announcing his acceptance of 
the honor which had been conferred upon him, Santa Anna 
expressed his gratitude to the legislative body for the re- 
paration which they had made him for the injuries he had 
received from those, who, acting in the name of the na- 
tion, had driven him into exile : " I have reflected much 
whether I should accept the office, which, for the fifth time 
in the course of my life, has been bestowed upon me; but 



428 POLICY OF THE MEXICAN EXECUTIVE. 

at last overcoming my natural repugnance, — stifling 
within my breast considerations of a private nature which 
influenced me, and, more than all, convinced that my fel- 
low-citizens will not do me the injustice to believe that I 
returned from ostracism to repossess myself of power, I 
have resolved upon the sacrifice; for there is nothing 
which I am not prepared to do in obedience to my be- 
loved country. My refusal would complicate our difficul- 
ties, by presenting a new electoral crisis, which would be 
perilous to the holy cause we are sustaining, against the 
morbid ambition of the United States of America."* 

Gomez Farias, in his inaugural message to the Con- 
gress, briefly stated the outlines of the policy he intended 
to pursue; he promised equal protection to the different 
branches of industry, a scrupulous observance of the laws 
and constitution, and finally, that the war should be prose- 
cuted with untiring energy, until the national territory 
should be evacuated by the armies of the northern con- 
federacy. The President of the Senate, in his reply, 
declared the country to be in danger, but expressed the 
confidence of the nation and of the legislature in the sin- 
cerity and wisdom of the Executive, whose firmness and 
integrity would not fail to bring to a favorable issue the 
ample and judicious plans which had been proposed for 
the public good. 

In the oath which was administered to the Vice-Pre- 
sident, he solemnly promised to maintain the constitution 
of 1824, the independence of the nation, and the integrity of 
the national domain. The last part of the official oath was 
added in order to prevent the cession of any portion of the 
country then in the hands of the Americans. The overtures 
of the government of the States for peace had been at an 
early period submitted to the consideration of the deputies, 
who unanimously rejected the terms, as utterly incompatible 

* Vide Santa Anna's Letter, San Luis, Dec. 27th, 1846. 



PROCEEDINGS OF THE MEXICAN CONGRESS. 429 

with the interests, dignity, and honor of the Mexican Re- 
public. No treaty, no pacification while the enemyremains 
within the confines of Mexico, was the universal sentiment 
among the members of both houses. 

The declarations contained in the messages of the 
President of the United States, aroused the anger of the 
more violent senators, and it was even proposed to issue a 
formal protest against the "false and injurious imputa- 
tions" set forth in those documents. The subject was 
seriously discussed, but was not adopted, because upon 
examination it was ascertained that, however disrespect- 
ful or objectionable the language of the messages, the 
facts contained therein were true and could not be con- 
troverted ; the proposition was in consequence very wisely 
abandoned. 

Having disposed of these urgent affairs, Congress 
nov\^ proceeded to consider the great question of the ses- 
sion ; this was the condition of the national finances ; a 
matter which admitted of no further delay, involving as it 
did, not only the stability of the present system of gov- 
ernment, but the very existence of the republic itself, in its 
original integrity. Various ingenious schemes were 
brought forward to replenish the exchequer, debates 
innumerable followed but no money could be obtained ; it 
was but too apparent that the Mexican nation was bank- 
rupt, and unless some means of relief were speedily 
devised, the operations of the government must cease, the 
army be disbanded, and the country given up to the 
invaders ; yet no ordinary mode of raising supplies could 
meet the extraordinary emergency. It would require more 
than ten millions of dollars to carry on the war, a sum 
which could only be obtained by resorting to an expedient 
which had already been ineffectually attempted by the 
preceding administration. This was to appropriate a por- 
tion of the property of the church for the benefit of the 
nation. This project was warmly supported by Gomez 



430 CONFISCATION OF CHURCH PROPERTY. 

Farias and his democratic adherents in Congress ; the 
former had advocated a similar measure in 1835, and had 
in consequence incurred the hatred of the clergy, who 
compelled him to fly for his life. 

On the night of the 7th of January, 1847, a bill was 
introduced into Congress, authorizing the government to 
raise fifteen millions of dollars for the purpose of carrying 
on the war with the United States, the money to be pro- 
cured by the sale or mortgage of the real estate then in 
possession of the Mexican church. At an early hour on 
the following morning the debates upon this important 
subject commenced, and were continued until evening. 
Those who opposed the scheme, blinded by bigotry and 
superstition, looked with horror upon the proposition, as 
one which would draw down the vengeance of heaven 
upon the already afflicted land — as a deed of wanton sac- 
rilege which no exigency could extenuate. The advocates 
of the measure asserted that it was not designed to injure 
the church, or to impair its usefulness ; that the vast 
estates in question were a part of the national property, 
the gift of individuals to the nation, to be used for its 
benefit in just such an emergency as the present, when the 
country was threatened with destruction ; that the clergy 
had been entrusted with this wealth in order that it might 
be husbanded until the necessities of the state required 
that it should be appropriated for the general good, and 
that there was no sacrilege, no violation of the principles 
of justice in making use of the national property for the 
preservation of the nation. It was also declared that the 
church and state being closely united, the fall of one 
would necessarily involve the other in its ruin, and that in 
fact the ecclesiastical wealth would be employed with as 
much advantage to the former as to the latter. At seven 
o'clock the Vicar General of Mexico sent in a protest 
against the bill, which was read to the chambers, after 
which the discussion of the question was resumed, and an 



PROTEST OF THE CLERGY. 431 

exciting debate ensued, which was kept up until a late 
hour of the night.* 

The opposition was led by the Senor Otero, who spoke 
vehemently against it, as a scheme calculated to destroy 
the religion of the country, by depriving it of the means 
of support, which had been, granted to the ecclesiastical 
establishment for the maintenance and promulgation of 
the holy faith, and for no other purpose, Senor Canas, a 
prominent federalist, replied, by reiterating the arguments 
which had been used by his colleagues, and presenting the 
alternative of an honorable resistance, or a disgraceful 
surrender of the country to the Americans — upon whose 
heads the sacrilegious crime, if there was one, would rest — 
he demanded the votes of the deputies in favor of the only 
measure that could save the republic. 

The question being put to a final vote, forty-four 
members voted in the affirmative, and thirty-five in the 
negative; the bill passing by a bare majority of nine.* 
The decree was approved by the President, and on the 
following day was promulgated. The clergy in the capi- 
tal had anxiously watched the proceedings of the legisla- 
tive body during the discussion of this interesting subject, 
and had employed every means in their power to defeat 
the scheme; and had it not been hurried through the 
chambers, it is more than probable that they would have 
succeeded in putting it down. On the 10th of the same 
month, the archbishop's chapter issued a formal protest 
against the law, as violating the fundamental principles 
of the church, this document was as follows : 

" Protest of the venerable Archbishop's Chapter against the taking 

possession of the church property. 

" This chapter having been informed from an undoubted source, 

that the sovereign Congress have this morning approved of an act 

for the taking possession of the church property, without losing a 

* Diario Official del Gobierno, Mexico, January 9th, 1847. 



432 EFFECTS OF THE CLERGY'S OPPOSITION. 

moment for the preservation of- those sacred rights charged upon 
them by the solemn canons of the church, have determined to direct 
to your excellency this communication, with the. object of making 
known that they cannot in any manner coincide with the measure 
entertained in the above-named act, not daring to incur the ecclesias- 
tical censures and penalties emitted at the end of the 11th chapter 
of the 22d session of the Sacred Council of Trent, and reiterated 
in the third Mexican; and in consequence they hereby enter the 
most solemn protest against the act now about to be sanctioned, only 
expecting from the piety of the supreme government, that the afore- 
named disposition oj the Sacred Council of Trent, which compre- 
hends all, whatever may be the dignity invested in them, and which 
inflicts the highest punishment upon those who disregard it, may be 
fully respected ; obeying likewise the fundamental law now reigning 
through the republic, which guarantees the property of our ecclesi- 
astical corporations. . 

" May it please your excellency to make known to the most 
excellent Senor Vice-President, that these are the sentiments enter- 
tained by this archbishop's chapter. 

" "We present to your excellency the assurances of our distin- 
guished consideration and esteem. God guard you many years. 

"Hall of the Sacred Church of the archbishop's chapter of 
Mexico, January 10th, 1847, 12 o'clock M." 

FELIX OSORES, 
FELIX GARCIA SERALE, 
JOSE M. GUZMAN, 
JOSE M. VASQUEZ. 
To the Minister of Justice and Ecclesiastical Affairs. 

This opposition upon the part of the clergy extended 
throughout the country ; the declarations of the Council of 
Trent were quoted as infallible authority, notwithstanding 
the fact, that eight venerable prelates and nine doctors of 
theology, sent by Spain to that assembly, had been accused 
of heresy and other crimes by the tribunal of the Inquisi- 
tion.* The priesthood denounced the government, as 

* Llorente's History of the Inq^uisition, chap. xxix. 



ENERGY OF FARIAS, 43^ 

favoring the cause of the enemies of the faith, by passing 
the act of confiscation, and a great excitement was created 
upon the subject among all classes of the people; the op- 
position to it was more violent in the cities and large 
towns than in the rural districts, religious establishments 
being more numerous in the former than in the latter. 
The protest of the archbishop's chapter was soon followed 
by others, from Puebla, Queretaro, and several of the inte- 
rior states, the clergy using every art known to them to 
stir up the popular mind against Farias and his party. 
In this they partially succeeded; the officials charged with 
the duty of levying upon the ecclesiastical property, were 
assailed by the excited people, and forced to retire, with- 
out being able to execute their functions, and it was 
apparent that a revolution would follow an attempt to 
enforce a measure so odious to the priest-ridden multitude. 

The Vice-President, however, was not to be intimi- 
dated by the threats of excommunication, or the turbulent 
hostility of the adherents of the church; he immediately 
applied himself with energy to the work he had so fear- 
lessly commenced; he called to his aid the military, and 
conferred upon the officers extraordinary powers, in order 
that the decree should be carried into execution. He 
caused the leaders of the outbreak to be seized and thrown 
into prison; he did not even spare the " venerable clergy" 
themselves, when they were caught in the act of foment- 
ing a rebellion against the constitutional authority. 

Another difficulty now appeared, and threatened to 
render the law of confiscation abortive ; the property" 
which had been levied upon could not be disposed of for 
money; no one could be found who was willing to 
advance the required sums upon the estates, nor to 
purchase them at any reasonable rate. Such was the 
fear with which the denunciations of the ecclesiastics 
had inspired the capitalists, that they declined to expose 
themselves to the vindictive enmity of a class that 
28 



'434 CATHEDRALS AND CHURCHES CLOSED. 

■were known never to forgive an injury to the church. 
'This motive did not deter the executive from persisting in 
Ms favorite measure, the seizures were continued at the 
point of the bayonet, in defiance of the unforeseen circum- 
stances with which it was involved. The great error in 
regard to this affair was, that the forced contribution was 
to be collected from the sale of real estate ; it should have 
been from the gold and silver plate, the rich adornments 
that glittered in heaps upon the altars of even the 
poorest chapel, and the priceless jewels that blazed 
upon innumerable shrines, or lay concealed in the coffers 
of the churches. 

Compelled to yield to the strong arm of the govern- 
ment, the clergy resorted to an expedient more potent than 
open resistance, they determined to employ their spiritual 
power to protect their temporal wealth. The cathedrals 
and religious edifices were closed, the altars were robed in 
the habiliments of mourning — the accustomed ceremonies 
and exercises were suspended; no sacramental rite was 
administered, save to the sick and dying ; marriages were 
unblessed, children unbaptized, and the souls of the dead 
were no longer prayed for during this dismal period of 
national calamity. 

These proceedings — which in this country would have 
excited the derision of the people — penetrated every heart 
with profound sorrow ; the multitude, deprived of one of 
their chief amusements,* cursed the government, while the 
more intelligent classes, who were constrained to ac- 
knowledge the necessity which had given rise to the 
unpopular decree, could not but feel the influence produced 
upon the minds of all by the events of the last few months. 

This sad condition of things was increased by the 
public journals devoted to the interests of the clergy, they 
openly counselled rebellion against the Executive and the 

Reliffious Festivals. 



OBJECT OF CONFISCATION LAW DEFEATED. 435 

constituent Congress, as the most effective method of 
defeating what they termed the sacrilegious attempt to 
despoil the ministers of Heaven of their sacred wealth. 

The principal object in passing the act of confiscation, 
had been to obtain an immediate supply to carry on the 
war ; the scheme had as yet scarcely brought a dollar into 
the treasury, and was therefore considered a failure by 
even those who advocated it in the chambers. 

President Farias, though surrounded with insuperable 
difficulties, firmly pursued his policy, conscious of his good 
intentions, he cared but little for the applause or censure 
of his compatriots. His ministers were, however, not 
gifted with his devotion to the cause of liberty, or his con- 
sistency ; they resigned in a body, toward the close of Janu- 
ary, unable to contend with the accumulated evils, which 
were inseparable from the responsible offices they had held. 

A new ministry was soon formed, of even better 
materials than the last ; Rejon taking charge of the bureau 
of relations, Senor Francisco Suarez Iriarte, that of 
finances, while General Canalizo continued to hold the 
portfolio of war and marine. 

The government of the United States having received 
no definite response to the pacific overtures which had 
been submitted three several times to the Mexican authori- 
ties, was now forced, in defence of its own policy, to prose- 
cute the war with vigor. 

In order to bring the enemy to terms, it was determined 
to consummate the design which had been formed for the 
reduction of Vera Cruz ; it was first proposed to land a 
force of 4,000 men upon the coast ; this arrangement not 
obtaining the approbation of General Taylor, who had 
been consulted upon the subject, and who gave it as his 
opinion that a descent should not be attempted with an 
army less than ten thousand strong, a more ample and 
judicious plan of operation was decided upon by the ad- 
ministration ; it was now proposed to concentrate a large 



436 GENERAL SCOTT ARRIVES AT THE BRAZOS. 

force between Vera Cruz and the mouth of the Rio Grande, 
which was to land suddenly at some point near the city, 
which it was anticipated could be taken if the attack was 
unexpected. General Winfield Scott was selected to com- 
mand the expedition, wliich was to be entirely disconnected 
with the movements of the army in the northern depart- 
ments, under Taylor. 

General Scott arrived at Brazos Santiago, about the 
1st of January, and commenced his preparations with an 
energy which promised success; vessels were collected, 
troops were withdrawn from Saltillo, and the interior, and 
a portion of the forces destined for the expedition were 
dispatched to Tampico, under General Shields, so that 
they might be convenient to the contemplated point of 
attack. General Scott, soon after he landed at the Brazos, 
had endeavored to communicate with Taylor, then at 
Victoria waiting to hear from him ; the officer selected to 
bear the dispatches was Lieutenant Richey of the 4th 
infantry: on the 14th of January the messenger, with his 
escort of ten dragoons, arrived at the town of Villa Grande. 
As he was crossing the public square, in company with an 
inhabitant of the place, a Mexican rode up to him and 
threw a lasso over his head; putting spurs to his horse, he 
instantly galloped off at full speed, dragging the body of 
his victim some distance. The miscreant then stripped 
the corpse of the unfortunate youth of the dispatches, 
which were highly important, as they related to the expe- 
dition then preparing against Vera Cruz ; by this means 
Santa Anna became acquainted with the proposed plan 
of operations and acted upon his information accordingly. 

On the 19th of January, a terrible massacre occurred 
in the vicinity of Santa Fe, in New Mexico ; on that day, 
Charles Bent, the territorial governor, was seized, together 
with the sheriff, prefect, district-attorney, and two other 
persons, at the town of San Fernando de Taos, and but- 
chered in cold blood, by a party of Mexicans, who had 



REVOLT IN NEW MEXICO. 437 

conspired to regain possession of the country. On the 
same day, nine Americans were killed in the same manner 
by the savage populace. The revolt soon spread over the 
neighboring country, and, on the 20th, Colonel Stirling 
Price, who commanded the troops at Santa Fe, learned 
that a strong body of Mexicans and Indians were advanc- 
ing upon that point; he immediately made preparations 
for battle, and on the 23d left the city, in search of the 
enemy, at the head of three hundred and fifty men, cavalry 
and infantry, supported by four pieces of artillery. 

On the following day the division encountered the 
Mexicans, who were posted in a strong position on the 
heights, in front of the village of Canada, and in some 
houses at the bottom of the hills. A fire was immediately 
opened upon them from the cannon, which was answered 
by the enemy, and an action ensued, which continued for 
an hour and a half; at the end of which. Colonel Price 
ordered a general charge upon the houses, and the other 
points occupied by the foe, and in a few minutes they 
were dispersed in every direction. The Mexican force in 
this engagement was fifteen hundred men ; their loss was 
thirty-six killed; the number of wounded was not ascer- 
tained, as they were carried off* the field; the American 
loss was two killed and six wounded.* The next day, 
Price advanced up the Rio del Norte to Lanceros, where 
he was reinforced on the 28th by Captain Burgwin, with 
two companies of dragoons and a field-piece. 

The division, now increased to four hundred and se- 
venty men, rank and file, marched to La Joya, where it 
was learned that the enemy was posted in the pass of 
Embudo; the road being impracticable for artillery, Capt. 
Burgwin was ordered to march against them with a de- 
tachment of a hundred and eighty men. The position of 
the Mexicans was a remarkably strong one, in a deep 

* Colonel Price's Dispatch, February 15th, 1847. 



438 OPERATIONS OF COLONEL PRICE. 

gorge of the mountains, where three men could scarcely 
march abreast; they were seven hundred in number, who 
occupied both sides of the steep and rugged hills. Throw- 
ing out flanking parties, Burgwin soon dislodged the 
adversary, who retired in the direction of Embudo with a 
speed which defied pursuit.* The detachment following 
the pass, entered the plain in w^hich the town was situated; 
as he drew near the place, the inhabitants came out to 
meet it with a white flag ; Embudo was taken possession 
of w^ithout resistance. The enemy's loss in this affair was 
twenty killed and sixty wounded; the American loss was 
one killed and one severely wounded."}" 

The subsequent operations of Colonel Price's command, 
as related by a prominent actor| in the conflicts, were 
equally successful : 

"On the 1st and 2d of February, we crossed the Taos 
mountain on a road having from two to three feet of un- 
broken snow. On the 3d we entered the town of Don 
Fernando, where Governor Bent was murdered, and there 
learned that the enemy had fortified themselves in the 
Indian town. We immediately marched upon it, and 
found the enemy strongly posted in and about the church, 
or behind the surrounding wall. The six-pounder and one 
howitzer were opened on them. The wall was soon broken 
in several places by both shot and shells, and several of 
the latter bursted handsomely in the town. Our ammuni- 
tion wagons, which had not been able to cross the moun- 
tain on the previous day, not having come up, we Avere 
compelled to return to Don Fernando to take up quarters 
for the night. 

" Early on the morning of the 4th, we again appeared 
before the town, determined to take it; and, satisfied that 
we would have a hard and bloody fight, I established the 

* Price's Dispatch. f Ibid. 

if. Lieutenant A. B. Dyer, of the Ordnance. 



DEFEAT OF THE MALCONTENTS. 439 

six-pounder and two howitzers on the north side of the 
town, and about two hundred and fifty yards distant, so as 
to sweep the side of the church, which faced inwards ; the 
other two were to the south-west, to sweep the front and 
give a cross fire on the town. A charge was soon ordered, 
and was made by Captain Burgwin, with his dragoons, and 
a company of volunteers in one line, and Captain Angney, 
with two companies of infantry and one of Price's regi- 
ment on another. A lodgment was made at the church, 
but nothing further could be done at that time, and our 
troops were exposed to a deadly fire — Captain Burgwin 
and a lieutenant of volunteers were soon carried off* mor- 
tally wounded — four dragoons were dead, and a number 
of troops wounded. The chm-ch walls were so thick as to 
forbid all hope of breaching them with the ammunition we 
had with us, and so a part of the wall was cut away with 
axes, and finally a small hole was cut through; but our 
men being shot through it whenever they commenced cut- 
ting, the work was stopped, and I was directed to breach 
it. The six-pounder was run up within sixty yards, and 
we soon had, in that part of the wall which had been 
thinned, a breach large enough to admit four men abreast. 
Several shells, which I had recovered at Canada, were 
prepared and thrown in, the roof was fired, and the six- 
pounder run up within thirty feet of the breach, and fired 
with grape. The storming party immediately followed, 
and in twenty minutes we had possession of that part of 
the town around the church, and the white fiag was raised 
on both pueblos : they were shot down, and night now 
coming on, we lay down in the full expectation of renew- 
ing the fight at early- dawn. 

" The enemy occupied two l&.rge and very strong build- 
ings, about one hundred and fifty feet long and seven 
stories high, of a pyramidal form, all the entrances being 
through the roofs, which were gained by ladders. The 
walls were too thick for our solid shot to pass through 



440 DONIPHAN DEFEATS HEREDIA. 

them, and we had but a few left. Early the next morning, 
the aged men, and women bringing their infants, images, 
and crosses, came to us with a white flag, begging for 
mercy and protection. Their request was granted, and 
we returned to Don Fernando. The Indians said they 
were excited to rebellion by the Mexicans, by the hope of 
plunder, and by being told that their property would be 
taken from them by the Americans. Our loss in killed 
and wounded, on the 4th, was fifty-four killed and wound- 
ed, out of less than four hundred and fifty. The loss of 
the enemy, one hundred and fifty-two killed; number of 
wounded not ascertained. Of the insurgent leaders, two 
had been killed at Canada and Pueblo de Taos ; one was 
a prisoner, and two at large. One of these has been 
brought in a prisoner, and was shot by a dragoon. This 
is an unfortunate circumstance. 

" Montayo, the leader, who was our prisoner, was tried 
by a drum-head court-martial, and sentenced to be hung; 
which sentence was carried into execution on the 7th in- 
stant, in presence of the troops, at Don Fernando." 

Colonel Doniphan, who had been ordered to form a 
junction with General Wool's division, had marched to- 
ward Chihuahua with a force of four hundred men, and in 
the latter part of December reached the vicinity of El 
Paso del Norte. While on the route, the Americans were 
attacked by a thousand Mexican troops ; Doniphan de- 
manded a parley, which was refused; he then returned the 
enemy's fire, and in a few minutes put them to flight. 
On the 27th the division entered El Paso, which was 
yielded without a blow. Doniphan remained at this place 
until he could hear something of the movements of Gen. 
Wool. On the 1st of February he received a reinforce- 
ment of men and artillery, which swelled his command to 
.eight hundred and fifty rank and file. The column toward 
the close of the month took up the line of march for Chi- 
ihuahua, and on the 28th encountered a body of Mexicans, 



INSURRECTION AT CALIFORNIA. 441 

under General Heredia, composed of one thousand three 
hundred and seventy-five cavah-y and infantry, supported 
by ten pieces of artillery.* 

The enemy threw forward a strong body of horse, 
which was commanded by General Garcia Conde ; as they 
charged towards the American line, they were received by 
a discharge from several pieces of cannon, which checked 
their advance, and at the third fire completely dispersed 
them.f The enemy then fell back to Sacramento, where 
he had erected defences, carrying with him in his retreat 
his killed and wounded. Doniphan pursued the Mexicans, 
and on arriving in front of their position, opened a fire 
from his field-battery upon their redoubts ; he also sent a 
party of cavalry against it, but they were repulsed. The 
redoubts were, however, finally taken, and the enemy put 
to the rout, leaving their cannon, camp equipage, and 
stores, in the hands of the victors.^ 

During the winter, the people of California had also 
risen against the authorities newly established in that 
region, and, regardless of their solemn oath of allegiance 
to the United States, had torn down the national ensign 
and hoisted that of Mexico in its place, on the walls of 
Ciudad de los Angeles, and at other points. The principal 
leader in this rising was General Fores, an officer who 
had been taken prisoner and released upon his parole of 
honor. An action occurred in November, between a party 
of seamen from the frigate Savannah and a division of the 
enem}^ near Domingo's rancho, in which the latter, being 
mounted and supported by artillery, gained some advan- 
tage over the sailors, who were on foot and armed with 
muskets; this made the Californians very bold, and it was 
found necessary to take prompt and vigorous measures to 
subdue them. In the early part of December, the com- 

* See General Heredia's Dispatch, March 2i, 1847. f Ibid. 

■\. See Appendix, XXII. 



442 DESTITUTION OF THE ENEMY. 

mander of the fleet, Commodore Stockton, mounted his 
seamen and advanced from San Diego against the enemy, 
who were posted near the City of the Angels in force. 
The exertions of the Commodore were not unsuccessful; 
the American flag was again raised in the revolted district. 
At a subsequent period an engagement took place near 
San Diego between the parties, in which the enemy were 
defeated with loss. General Kearney participated in 
this affair and was wounded. 

General Santa Anna having by his patriotic and ener- 
getic efforts succeeded in equipping, drilling, and organiz- 
ing the different corps of his army, resolved at the close 
of winter to strike the long meditated blow against the 
enemies of his country. The government had been foiled 
in the measures it had adopted for the relief of the military, 
and much destitution and suffering resulted from the want 
of the requisite supplies. Santa Anna, it has been before 
observed, had pledged his private property for the support 
of his men; the legislature of the state of San Luis had 
also contributed to the maintenance of the forces upon 
whose future deeds the hopes of the nation were fixed. 
The whole number of troops of all arms concentrated at 
San Luis, amounted to twenty-one thousand three hundred 
and forty men. Many of these were raw recruits, who 
were violently dragged from their homes, and had never 
heard the sound of a hostile gun;* they had, however, 
received good training daring the long time they were 
encamped, and might have been considered equal to the 
majority of the soldiery of that country, in point of disci- 
pline, for their commander and his officers spared no effort 
to make them good and efficient soldiers. The long de- 
tention at San Luis at last began to wear out the patience 
of the men, and the General-in-chief felt that unless he 
began his active operations his army would disappear, as 

* Santa Anna's Dispatch, February 27th, 1847. 



STRENGTH OF MEXICAN ARMY. 443 

desertion, to a shameful extent, had already thinned the 
ranks. " I therefore resolved," said he, " if annihilated, it 
should be with glory." Having no supplies, the General 
was again forced to pledge himself for the payment of 
food for his suffering brigades. In this way he procui'ed 
the sum of one hundred and eighty thousand dollars, with 
which he was able to furnish them with twelve days' pay. 

On the 27th of January, 1847, the first division of the 
army prepared to move toward the north, on which oc- 
casion the General issued a proclamation to the troops, 
appealing to their patriotism and character as Mexicans ; 
he encouraged them to bear the privations and suffering 
they would be compelled to endure, with patience, as the 
cause they sustained was a holy one. " Let us swear," 
said he, " before the great Eternal, that we will not delay 
an instant in purging our soil of the stranger who has 
dared to profane it with his presence. No treaty, nothing 
which may not be heroic, and proud." 

The army left San Luis by brigades, and advanced 
upon Saltillo by hasty marches.* General Jose Minon had 

* The number of troops composing the Mexican army, according to 
their own statement, was as follows : 
The sappers and artillerists, with nineteen guns of heavy 

calibre 650 

1st, 3d, 4th, 5th, 10th and 11th regiments of the line, and 1st and 

3d light troops 6,240 

4th light troops, mixed of Santa Anna, 1st active of Celaya, do. 

of Guadalaxara, do. of Lagos, do. of Queretaro, do. of Mexico, 3,200 

Total, departed from San Luis 10,090 

Troops which General Parrodi conducted from the town of Tula, 

with three pieces of heavy calibre, with their munitions 1,000 

Cavalry on the march G,000 

Artillery do 250 

Division under General Mejia 4,000 

Total 21,340 

[The artillery was supplied with 600 rounds of ammunition.] 



444 CAPTURE OF MAJOR GAINES. 

been ordered to the front with a strong division of cavaby, 
with directions to observe the movements of the Ameri- 
cans ; this duty was executed in so skillful a manner 
that the latter were unaware of their approach. 

By the 2d of February the whole army was en route 
for the north ; the commander-in-chief left San Luis on that 
day; he travelled in a large, clumsy carriage, drawn by 
eight mules. 

On the 19th of January, Major Gaines with a party 
of thirty Kentucky cavalry, who had been engaged in a 
reconnoissance on the San Luis road, arrived at the 
hacienda of Encarnacion. He encountered at this place 
a detachment of Arkansas horse, under the command 
of Major Borland, who had been waiting there for some 
days for a reinforcement, in order to attack a division of 
the enemy, who were said to be posted in front. The 
Americans started on the expedition, but having no 
guide, were constrained to return to the hacienda. On the 
following morning they found themselves surrounded on 
all sides by an overwhelming force of Mexican cavalry. 
Answering the challenge of the enemy's bugles with a 
shout of defiance, the party prepared to defend themselves ; 
as the lancers advanced on one side, a white flag was seen 
to approach on the other, the bearer of which demanded 
a surrender to General Minon, whose force consisted of 
three thousand men. After some deliberation, the terms 
offered by Minon, which were sufficiently liberal, were ac- 
cepted by the officers, although the men were eager to fight, 
notwithstanding the disparity of numbers. On the 22d, 
the prisoners were marched off toward the south; on the 
evening of that day, Captain Henrie, who had been cap- 
tured at Mier some years before, and had felt the bitter 
pangs which await the unfortunate victims of Mexican 
vengeance, made an almost miraculous escape, and carried 
the news of the misfortune which had befallen his com- 
rades, to the American army at Saltillo. 



MURDER OF THE MEXICANS. 445 

General Wool, then in command of the forces, rightly 
conceiving that it could be no ordinary party of obser- 
vation which had displayed itself in front, informed 
General Taylor, who was then at Monterey, of the event 
which had taken place, and of his conviction that Minon's 
division was the advance of the enemy's main body, 
Taylor left Monterey on the 31st of January, with a small 
reinforcement, and reached Saltillo on the 2d of February ; 
he immediately advanced to Agua Nueva, twenty miles 
south of the city, and encamped, his whole force being 
about five thousand, most of which was composed of vol- 
unteers who had never been in battle. While the army 
was in position at this place occurred an event, which is 
deeply to be regretted, and conflicts with a declaration I 
have made in regard to the humane manner in which the 
war has been conducted ; but as it was the act of a sepa- 
rate corps, the odium rests upon it and not upon the arms 
of the republic. The Arkansas cavalry having lost a 
number of men belonging to the regiment, who were killed 
in a most inhuman manner, as their mutilated remains 
plainly indicated, resolved to revenge the death of their 
comrades. A party of thirty of them left the camp, 
unknown to their commanders, and entered a ravine where 
a portion of the inhabitants of the country had fled for 
shelter. The Arkansas men fell upon them and put some 
twenty of them to death ; an act of cowardly vengeance, 
even if the Mexicans were guilty, because they were 
unarmed and defenceless at the time. 

On the 20th of February, 1847, the Mexican columns 
arrived at the hacienda of Encarnacion, having endm*ed 
the combined sufferings of cold, hunger, and fatigue, during 
the long march of three hundred miles from San Luis. 
Santa Anna reviewed his troops at this place, and dis- 
covered that his force had diminished, during the advance, 
at least one thousand, by desertion, sickness, and other 



446 BATTLE FIELD OF BUENA VISTA. 

causes.* At noon on the following day he left Encarnacion 
and encamped that night at the pass of Carnero, a short 
distance from Taylor's lines. The latter having learned 
from the Texan spies, under Major McCulloch, that the 
former was approaching, broke up his camp at Agua Nueva 
on the evening of the 21st, and fell back to the pass of 
Angostura, a distance of twelve miles, and took a position 
in a narrow defile, directly in front of the hacienda of San 
Juan de Buena Vista. The place had been previously 
examined by General Wool, and the commander-in-chief 
selected it as possessing the best advantages for fighting a 
force so immensely superior. On either side of the valley, 
which 'was so contracted in some places that a single 
wagon could scarcely pass through it, arose steep and 
rugged hills ; on the right of the road a number of deep 
gullies extended back to some distance. On the left, a 
succession of broken ridges and precipitous ravines ran 
back toward the mountain ; a ditch also covered the road 
on the left. Having assumed a position here, General 
Taylor proceeded to Saltillo, on the same evening, to 
prepare for its defence, leaving General Wool in command 
at Angostura. 

About eleven o'clock, on the morning of the 22d of 
February, the enemy's advance, consisting of all his 
cavalry, commanded by Santa Anna in person, came in 
sight of the American lines. The forces drawn up to 
receive them were but four thousand seven hundi-ed and 
fifty-nine, rank and file, four thousand of whom were vol- 
unteers. The position occupied by the difierent corps, was 
as follows : Captain Washington's battery, (4th Ai'tillery,) 
was posted to command the road, while the 1st and 2d 
Illinois regiments, under colonels Hardin and Bissell, each 
eight companies, (to the latter of which was attached 
Captain Connor's company of Texas volunteers,) and the 

* Santa Anna's Dispatch, February 27th, 1847. 



SANTA ANNA SUMMONS TAYLOR TO SURRENDER. 447 

2d Kentucky, under Colonel McKee, occupied the crests of 
the ridges on the left, and in the rear. The Arkansas and 
Kentucky cavalry, commanded by colonels Yell, and H. 
Marshall, occupied the extreme left, near the base of the 
mountain ; while the Indiana brigade, under Brigadier- 
General Lane, composed of the 1st and 2d regiments, 
under colonels Bowles and Lane ; the Mississippi riflemen, 
under colonel Davis ; the squadrons of 1st and 2d Dra- 
goons, under Captain Steen and Lieutenant-Colonel May, 
and the light batteries of captains Sherman and Bragg, 
3d artillery, were held in reserve."* 

The advance guard of the Mexican army, consisting of 
four light battalions, commanded by General Ampudia, 
was sent forward to take possession of a height on the 
right of the road, and in rear of the ravines. This 
manoeuvre was well executed, and in the meantime Santa 
Anna sent a staff-officer with a flag, demanding of Taylor 
that he must surrender at discretion, promising him good 
treatment and honorable usage ; that he had surrounded 
him with twenty thousand men — that resistance was out 
of the question — and if he attempted it, his command must 
be routed and destroyed. Taylor, in reply, informed the 
Mexican leader that he could not comply with his request 
and that he might commence operations as soon as he was 
inclined to do so.f 

The battle began upon the extreme left, and a brisk 
fire was kept up between Ampudia's brigade and a portion 
of the Arkansas and Kentucky cavalry, which had dis- 
mounted, and in conjunction with a rifle battalion had 
engaged the enemy. The latter opened his artillery and 
threw a few shells against the former, but without effect. 
The skirmishing continued until night, the loss sustained 
by either party being very slight. Both armies remained 
in position, sleeping upon their arms in the open air ; the 

* General Taylor's Dispatch, March 6th, 1847, 
f See Appednix, XXIII. 



448 BATTLE FIELD OF ANGOSTURA. 

night was cold and bleak, the wind was blowing terrifi- 
cally, and the rain drenched the soldiers to the skin. 
General Taylor returned to Saltillo that evening, with the 
Mississippi rifles and a squadron of dragoons.* During the 
day a body of fifteen hundred cavalry, under General 

* February 21. — At 1 in the afternoon we marched from Encarnacion. 
Such was the scarcity of water, that the wells hardly sufficed for the 
troops, and the horses and mules had to be sent to some distance to be 
watered. At nine in the evening we encamped at the pass of Carnero, but 
we suffered severely from a violent and cold norther, and had to kindle 
fires in order to endure it, although contrary to orders. 

22. — At dawn we commenced the march, and learned on the road that 
the enemy had abandoned his position and retired towards Saltillo. At 
five minutes after nine we arrived at Agua Nueva, whence the General-in- 
chief went in advance, with all the cavalry, and at eleven we overtook the 
enemy in possession of the heights called Chupadero, or Angostura, as 
shown in the map, (the A's, signifying Americans, and the M's, 
Mexicans.) 

We took a position in M 1, and awaited the infantry, which arrived 
at one o'clock, having taken on the road, five wagons and some provisions 
and forage, left on it by the enemy. The four light corps, under General 
Ampudia and Colonel Baneneli, were immediately ordered to take pos- 
session of height C. The enemy vainly tried to dislodge them from it 
by moving against it a heavy column, A 1, which maintained the attack 
all the afternoon, but was compelled to retire, leaving the ravine filled 
with wounded. In our position we passed the night, which was abso- 
lutely infernal, owing to cold, rain and wind, which latter almost 
amounted to a hurricane; while we had neither food nor fuel. 

23. — At dawn we commenced our movements. About 3,000 infantry, 
and four pieces, commanded by General Pacheco, moved to the right to 
take the height F ; and at nine a heavy fire was opened. The cavalry 
charged at the same moment. The charge was excellent, though some 
of the corps acted badly. Much havoc was however made among the 
enemy, and the height was carried by force of arms. We also lost a 
large number of men, and the new corps of Guanajuato dispersed. If 
at that juncture we had been attacked with vigor, we would probably have 
been defeated. New columns were organized, and successively charged 
with extraordinary valor, and though the enemy defended himself with 
extraordinary firmness, he was dislodged from the height g, we remain- 
ing in possession of the field, in the position, Mh, 31 d, and he reduced 
to that of J k. — JBy an officer of Engineers in the Mexican army. 



^BUENA- VISTA 




30 



BATTLE OF LA ANGOSTURA, OR BUENA VISTA. 
A. — Americans. M.— Mexicans. 



BATTLE OF BUENA VISTA. 451 

Minon, had appeared between Angostura and the city, evi- 
dently placed there to attack the rear of the American 
line, or to make an attempt upon the town itself. To 
provide for the defence of Saltillo was an important duty; 
a field-work had been erected, upon which was mounted 
two howitzers ; the General also detached two companies 
of riflemen and a field-piece for the protection of the place. 
At sunrise on the morning of the 23d, Santa Anna or- 
dered General Pacheco, with a division of three thousand 
infantry and four guns of heavy calibre, to take the posi- 
tion occupied by the Americans, in front. The cavalry 
was at the same time brought up to support the move- 
ment. The light troops, under Ampudia, had already 
suffered from the fire of Marshall's riflemen, who, sheltered 
by the uneven ground, handled their weapons as back- 
woodsmen alone know how to do; every missile told 
in the right place. The columns, under Pacheco, charged 
up the road; as they approached, a battery was opened 
upon them, and they were assailed by a stream of grape 
and canister, which compelled them to fall back in dis- 
order; one portion of the troops were entirely dispersed. 
Reorganizing his broken masses, Santa Anna again sent 
them forward; moving toward the left of the American 
line, which was extended upon a large plateau ; the enemy 
were met by the 2d Indiana and Illinois regiments, and 
three pieces of cannon. An effective fire was poured into 
the Mexican columns, but failed to check their advance ; 
on they came, driving back the infantry, which, exposed to 
a battery posted to the left, were unable to support the 
artillery, one piece of which was captured by the enemy. 
The second Indiana regiment was seized with a panic, 
and turning upon its front fled in disorder from the field. 
The officers attempted, but in vain, to arrest their flight, 
several of those belonging to the general staff* dashed 
among them for the same purpose, one of whom seizing 
the colors of the regiment, urgently besought the men not 



452 OPPORTUNE ARRIVAL OF TAYLOR. 

to disgrace themselves by such dastardly conduct. A portion 
of the corps rallied around their standard and returned to 
their duty; the greater part, however, continued their flight 
to the hacienda of Buena Vista; some of them fled to Sal- 
tillo, reporting that the battle was lost and the army in 
full retreat. 

The left wing of the American line having been driven 
back in disorder, and the Mexican columns continuing to 
advance in overwhelming force against that flank, the 
light troops were compelled to retire from their position 
on the mountain, leaving the former masters of the ground; 
some of the latter were not rallied until they reached 
Buena Vista, a mile in the rear. The Illinois regiment, 
supported by Sherman's battery, made a gallant effort to 
hold its position ; great numbers of the enemy were swept 
down at every discharge of the guns, but the destructive 
fire seemed to fall unheeded among the dusky masses, 
which were pressing with resistless impetuosity against 
the opposing line. Unable to sustain so unequal a conflict, 
and being completely outflanked, this part of the army also 
gave way and was forced to retire. On came the Mexi- 
cans, several thousands in number, winding along the base 
of the mountain, which seemed " girdled with a belt of 
steel, as their glittering sabres and polished lances reflected 
the beams of the morning sun." 

The enemy had now gained the rear of the American 
left, and the battle was upon the point of being lost when 
General Taylor arrived upon the scene of action from 
Saltillo, where he had passed the night. The Missis- 
sippi riflemen, under Colonel Davis, who had been 
ordered to the left, immediately engaged the Mexican 
infantry, and in conjunction with Bragg's battery and the 
2d Kentucky regiment, maintained a desperate conflict 
with the attacking columns. The cavalry advancing ra- 
pidly toward the Mississippians, appeared about to ride 
them down and trample them to the earth, when their 



HAVOC AMONG THE MEXICANS. 453 

line opened in the form of the letter >► , and when the 
lancers had entered between the lines, a tremendous fire 
was pom-ed into their ranks, which forced them to fall back 
in confusion. The left being strengthened by the transfer 
of additional troops and artillery from the right, the fury 
of the battle increased ; grape and canister, rifle and musket 
shot, swept down whole battalions of the enemy in front 
and rear ; the air was obscui-ed with smoke and the moun- 
tains reverberated with the roar of the cannon of either 
army. 

The efforts of Santa Anna to break the American left 
were unceasing; column after column of cavalry and 
infantry were thrown toward that point, but with no suc- 
cess; they were repulsed with great loss at every charge. 
The Mexican cavalry skirting the base of the mountain, 
although suffering severely from the shower of iron missiles 
which spread havoc among the squadrons, continued to 
advance toward Buena Vista; some of them, unable to 
stand the fire, halted and retreated under shelter of a ra- 
vine to the main body, — the movement was effected under 
cover of a battery which had been brought up for that 
purpose. As it was evidently the purpose of the column 
to make an attempt upon the hacienda where the wagon- 
train and baggage had been deposited. General Taylor 
ordered Colonel May's dragoons and two field-pieces to 
that point. Before this force reached the hacienda, the 
enemy charged upon the troops already there; they were 
met and repulsed by the Kentucky and Arkansas cavalry, 
the commander of the latter corps, Colonel Yell, receiving 
his death-wound from a Mexican lance during the en- 
counter. The lancers divided into two portions, one of 
which charging past the depot, Avas received by a galling 
discharge of small arms and artillery, which drove them in 
disarray back to the mountains. Colonel May noAV arrived 
with a reinforcement of horse, and taking a position on 
the enemy's right flanlc, he held them in check, while the 



454 RUSE OF SANTA ANNA. 

cannon did terrible execution upon the masses crowded in 
the narrow defiles. 

The fate of this division of the Mexican army seemed 
about to be decided; it had advanced, in the eager effort to 
gain the rear, too far from the main army, and annihila- 
tion or a surrender appeared to be the only alternative. 
Perceiving the critical situation in which his best cavalry 
were placed, Santa Anna, in order to gain time for them 
to extricate themselves, sent one of his stajOf to General 
Taylor with a message, demanding of him — " what he 
wanted?" The latter ordered his troops to cease fii'ing, 
and dispatched General Wool to the former's head-quarters 
to confer with him. The Mexicans still kept up their fire 
all the while, and General Wool, unable to stop them, was 
of course compelled to return without seeing Santa Anna, 
who did not intend that he should have that honor. The 
ruse succeeded admirably ; the broken squadrons in the rear 
of the American lines efl^ected a retreat along the base of 
the mountain, and, in spite of the efforts of the whole army, 
rejoined the Mexican camp. The stratagem employed by 
Santa Anna, upon this memorable occasion, illustrates the 
character of the man — his entire disregard of the principles 
of justice, Avhere his own interests are concerned, and the 
ease and rapidity with which his intellect suggested a 
remedy for an unforeseen contingency. The Mexican 
people applaud the craft of their leader : had an American 
general been guilty of a similar offence, it cannot be 
doubted but that the whole nation would have condemned 
it as an act worthy of no one but a Camanche Indian. 

General Minon, in the meantime, with his brigade of 
cavalry ascended an elevated plain above Saltillo, and oc- 
cupied a position between Taylor's army and the town; 
while here they captured several of the swift-footed mes- 
sengers who were carrying the news of the defeat. Minon 
having made a demonstration upon the city, he was 
received by a severe fire from the redoubt defended by 



FINAL EFFORT OF SANTA ANNA. 455 

Webster's battery, which caused him to retire ; as he fell' 
back, Captain Shover pursued him with one field-piece and 
a party of horsemen, which being reinforced soon after by 
a company of Illinois volunteers and another cannon, he 
was driven into the defiles which led to the low ground,, 
where he was closely followed. Minon attempted to 
charge the artillery, but his men, incapable of sustaining 
the fire, were thrown into confusion and retreated in dis- 
order, nor did he again make his appearance in the 
vicinity.* While this exciting affair was passing in the 
rear, the main armies continued to answer each other's 
guns, but only at intervals. Santa Anna had made no 
movement of any importance since the return of hi& 
cavalry from their perilous position in the rear of the 
adverse line. 

This apparent want of energy on the part of the 
enemy, was caused by his preparations for a last desperate 
effort to dislodge his adversary, whose ranks seemed to 
grow in power and in numbers, rather than to diminish, 
beneath the fire of his ordnance. For this final endeavor 
Santa Anna ordered a battery of six-pounders to the front, 
and another of twent}"-four pounders to the right, the 
columns on the left were at the same time transferred to 
the right flank ; the reserves were also brought up into 
the front and formed into battle array. The command of 
these forces was entrusted to General Francisco Perez, a 
brave soldier and a warm friend of the General-in-chief. 
The word was given to advance, and the columns rushed 
forward upon the Americans, who were extended on the 
level ground between the ravines. This wing was com- 
posed of the Kentucky and Illinois foot, under Hardin and 
McKee. As the enemy advanced, his guns opened upon 
the flank, which he had determined to turn at all hazards. 

* Miaon was arraigned before a court-martial for his conduct in this 
aiFair. 



456 TIMELY ARRIVAL OF CAPTAIN BRAGG. 

The infantry, in whose front were placed two field-pieces, 
resisted the overwhelming masses of horse and foot, which 
-were rapidly approaching, with intrepidity, and the artil- 
ifery, under Captain O'Brien, continued to belch forth 
its deadly contents every moment; but resistance was 
useless; as well might they have attempted to stop the 
progress of an avalanche. 

Overborne by numbers, the left wing of the American 
army gave way, leaving two pieces of cannon in the hands 
of the enemy. " The moment was most critical," Captain 
Bragg, who had at that instant arrived with his artillery, 
was ordered by his General to open upon the Mexican 
columns. " Without any infantry to support him, and at 
the imminent risk of losing his guns, this officer came 
rapidly into action, the Mexican line being but a few yards 
from the muzzle of his pieces. The first discharge of 
canister caused the enemy to hesitate; the second and 
third drove him back in disorder, and saved the day."* 
The second Kentucky regiment followed in pursuit, and in 
the eagerness of the moment pressed onward too far ; the 
enemy's cavalry, seeing the position of this corps, turned 
upon it and drove it into a ravine, at the termination of 
which was a squadron of lancers ready to charge upon 
them; thus placed between two divisions of the enemy, 
the gallant Kentuckians defended themselves Avith a 
courage which increased with the danger, and for a time 
the carnage on both sides w^as terrible. The Mexicans 
bore down upon them with the glittering points of many 
thousand spears ; their onset was resistless, and the handful 
of Americans seemed doomed to inevitable destruction. 
Colonel McKee and his second in command, Colonel 
Clay, encouraged their men by their heroic bearing, and 
inspired confidence in them by the cool manner in which 
they performed their duty. The Kentuckians, overwhelmed 

* General Taylor's Dispatch, IMarch 6th, 1847. 



RETKEAT TO AGUA NUEVA. 457 

by the masses which W'^ere thrown against their diminished 
line, began to retreat through the ravines in disorder; at 
this moment, when all seemed lost, Washington's battery 
opened upon the lancers, and hurled death into their com- 
pact ranks; horse and rider fell headlong to tlie earth, and 
a broad path was soon made through the enemy's squadrons 
by the storm of grape and canister rained upon them by 
the artillery. Unable to stand the murderous fire, the 
Mexicans suddenly wheeled and retreated ; as they did so 
the Mississippi riflemen poured a volley into their flank, 
which hastened their retrograde movement. 

General Perez returned with the shattered remains of 
his command, now greatly reduced in numbers, and de- 
moralized in feeling, and was well received by Santa 
Anna. Night now drew her dusky mantle over the 
scene and the exhausted soldiers threw themselves upon 
the earth, and refreshed themselves for the first time for 
many hours. General Taylor ordered the wounded to be 
carefully attended to, and during the night they were taken 
to Saltillo. The evening was severely cold, the mercury 
being below the freezing point ; no fuel could be procured, 
and the weary troops were compelled to bivouac on the 
ground without fires. Fully expecting a renewal of the 
battle on the next day, the General drew seven fresh com- 
panies from the city, and made other preparations for the 
anticipated struggle. 

The field which had vdtnessed the fierce strife of the 
contending armies presented a dismal spectacle to the eye 
of the beholder ; the level ground between the ravines 
was covered with the bodies of the killed and wounded; 
so were the gorges, the road, and the side of the mountain. 
A thousand mutilated corses lay stiffening on the earth, 
and the moans of the dying were heard on all sides. 

Soon after dark Santa Anna retreated to Agua Nueva, 
carrying with him six hundred of his wounded. The 
Mexican loss in this battle was nearly two thousand, five 



458 SANTA ANNA RETREATS TO SAN LUIS. 

hundred of whom were left dead upon the field. The 
American loss was two hundred and sixty-seven killed, 
and four hundred and fifty-six wounded ; among the former 
were several officers, whose deaths robbed the victory of 
half its glory.* The gallant Hardin,, of the IlKnois regi- 
ment ; Colonel McKee, and the chivalric Clay of the second 
Kentucky regiment ; Colonel Yell of the Arkansas cavalry, 
and many brave subalterns, fell at the head of their troops, 
in the very thickest of the fight. The Kentuckians, Mis- 
sissippians, a part of the Indianians, and the whole of the 
IlHnois troops, behaved with unexampled coolness and 
courage ; while the three companies of regular artillery, 
under Bragg,Washington, Sherman, and O'Brien, performed 
deeds of heroic valor seldom witnessed ; three times, during 
the conflict, they had driven the dense masses of the 
enemy back, when victory was almost within his grasp. 

The battle of Buena Vista was the severest which had 
been fought, and for several hours the fate of the day 
seemed to hang upon the slightest movement. During 
the heat of the engagement, when the whole force of the 
Mexican army was pressing on to the attack, General 
Taylor was urged by some of his most experienced officers 
to fall back and take up a new position — a suggestion he 
refused to listen to, but resolved to hold his ground to the 
last. On the 24th the American commander dispatched a 
staff"-officer to Agua Nueva to negotiate an exchange of 
prisoners, which was effected to the satisfaction of both 
parties. Santa Anna summoned a council of war on the 
25th, the unanimous vote of which was in favor of a re- 
treat to San Luis.f On the 27th the advance of the 
American army appeared at Agua Nueva, at the same 
time the rear guard of the Mexicans evacuated the place. 
Santa Anna continued his route to San Luis, his men 
suffering much on the march ; his reception at that city 

* See Appendix, XXII. f Santa Anna's Dispatch, Feb. 27, 1847. 



MEXICO TORN BY INTESTINE COMMOTIONS. 459 

was enthusiastic — he made a triumphal entry into its 
walls amid the peal of ordnance, the shouts of the people, 
and other demonstrations of public rejoicing. San Luis 
was illuminated that evening, in honor of the return of the 
distinguished chief. 

While these momentous events were passing in the 
north, the south of Mexico was torn by intestine commo- 
tions; the clergy, resorting to their peculiar weapons, 
sowed dissensions between the people, the soldiery, and 
the government, which produced the expected result. 
On the night of the 26th of February, several regiments 
of the militia, or national guard, quartered in the city of 
Mexico, raised the cry of revolt, and issued a pronuncia- 
mento against the federal system and Gomez Farias. 
The insurrection was headed by Don Matias Pena y Bar- 
ragan, a monarchist and an ally of the clergy. General 
Canalizo endeavored to put down the attempt, but could 
not succeed; the influence of the priesthood was too great, 
and in a short time the capital was in a state of great 
excitement, which threatened the overthrow of the govern- 
ment. The news of the battle of Buena Vista produced a 
lull in the tempest, by diverting the minds of the rabble 
and soldiery to a different subject. The army, said Santa 
Anna and his officers, in their dispatches, has gained a 
great victory over the American forces ; famine and misery 
have compelled us to retreat, the elements also conspired 
to drive us to this alternative, but we have paralyzed the 
enemy and left him terrified! During the rejoicings which 
followed this announcement, the tumults which disgraced 
the city were quelled for a brief space. 

On the 19th of March, two days after his arrival at 
San Luis, Santa Anna addressed a communication to the 
Vice-President, and another to General Barragan, in which 
he expressed his determination to proceed to the capital and 
assume the reins of government in person. He ordered the 
hostile chiefs to cease their fratricidal war, which was alike 



460 ENTHUSIASTIC RECEPTION OF SANTA ANNA. 

opposed to the A^oice of reason and humanity, causing 
Mexican blood to flow in the streets of the city, which 
should only be shed in defence of the country. This ap- 
peal had the desired effect; an armistice was agreed upon, 
and all parties impatiently awaited the return of the illus- 
trious General from the north. 

On his route to the capital, Santa Anna v^^as greeted 
everywhere by the people with demonstrations of un- 
bounded respect; he received congratulatory addresses 
from several of the states, and was waited upon by a 
deputation from Congress before he reached his destina- 
tion. On the 20th he arrived in the vicinity of Mexico; 
two days afterM'^ards he took the oath of office, and was 
inaugurated as President of the republic at the town or 
suburb of Guadalupe. On the afternoon of the 24th of 
March, he entered the capital with great pomp and so- 
lemnity. A Te Deum was sung in the cathedral where he 
attended mass, after which he received the felicitations of 
the municipal authorities. Had he annihilated the whole 
American army, and rolled back the invading tide beyond 
the Sabine, Santa Anna would not have been greeted with 
more enthusiasm by the fickle and excitable Mexicans. 
In his inaugural address, the President declared his inten- 
tion to support the constitution and the laws, to prosecute 
the war to a successful issue, and to restore the internal 
and external peace, upon which the happiness of the 
nation depended. 

General Winfield Scott having completed his prepara- 
tions for the reduction of Vera Cruz, embarked his divisions 
which had been concentrated at Tampico and the island 
of Lobos, sixty miles south of that place, and on the 9th 
of March appeared before the strong city and castle of 
San Juan de Ulloa. The latter has already been described; 
the former is situated on the mainland, and is a well-built, 
handsome town; the houses are generally two stories 
high, constructed in the old Spanish style, with a square 



VILLA RICA DE LA VERA CRUZ. 461 

court in the centre, and with flat roofs. The material of 
which they are composed is a species of coral {rnadrej)ora 
astrea) which abounds in the vicinity ; the lime of which 
the cement is formed is also made from the same sub- 
stance ; it is used to protect the coverings of the houses, 
and upon the foot-pavements, receiving from friction a 
polish like marble. The walls of the city are built of the 
same material, and are strengthened by nine bastions, two 
of which, Santiago and Conception, are remarkably strong 
and of immense size; their guns command the castle and 
the entrance to the harbor, the curtain connecting these 
towers is of inconsiderable height and thickness. The 
circumference of the walls is 3,124 Castilian varas;* the 
number of cannon mounted upon it, at various points, was 
more than one hundred, ten of which were brass mortars. 
Vera Cruz was founded about the year 1560, by the 
Count de Monterey, upon the spot where Cortes first land- 
ed; it was invested with the privileges of a city in 1615, 
by Philip III., king of Spain. The Villa Rica, begun by 
the conquerors in 1519, was situated to the north of the 
present town, three leagues from Zempoalla. Three years 
afterwards, the Spaniards removed the settlement to the 
mouth of the Rio Antigua, which they were also compelled 
to abandon on account of the insalubrity of the location. 
Vera Cruz contains many massive and imposing structures, 
which have, however, been suffered to fall into decay.. 
The population of the place has been gradually diminishing, 
under the blighting influence of intestine war, for many 
years; in 1802, it was estimated at sixteen thousand;! in 
1831, it had decreased to six thousand two hundred and 
twenty-eight; at the present time, it is scarcely four thou- 
sand. The Mexican government were perfectly acquainted 

* The Castilian vara is three inches less than the English yard. The 
circuit within the walls is 5,362,000 square feet, 
t Humboldt. 



462 DESCENT UPON THE COAST. 

with the designs of General Scott against this important 
point, and had made every effort in its power to put it in a 
condition to repel an attack, but owing to the difficulties 
under which the administration labored at this critical 
juncture the preparations for defence were incomplete. 

On the afternoon of the 9th of March, 1847, the Ameri- 
can army, consisting in the aggregate of twelve thousand 
men, prepared to make a descent upon the coast, under 
cover of the guns of the squadron, consisting of the steamer 
Mississippi, the Raritan and Potomac frigates, and the 
John Adams, Albany, and St. Mary's sloops of war, to 
which was attached a fleet of smaller vessels, composed 
of the steamers Spitfire and Vixen, and five gun-boats; 
the naval force was commanded by Commodore Connor. 
At five o'clock the 1st division, under General Worth, four 
thousand strong, entered the surf-boats, sixty-seven in 
number, w^hich were each placed in charge of a naval offi- 
cer, and rowed by sailors belonging to the ships ; the gun- 
boats, or " musquito fleet," were anchored three miles 
below the city, so as to protect the grand movement by 
their cross fire. The line of boats advanced toward the 
shore to the south of the town in regular order; as they 
approached, the enemy opened a fire upon them from the 
latter and the castle, which was too distant to have the 
slightest effect. When the troops neared the beach, they 
sprang into the sea, and forming by companies rushed on 
land; the 2d division, under General Patterson, followed 
in the same manner; and the 3d division, commanded by 
General Twiggs, reached the shore by midnight, — the 
movement having been effected without the loss of a man, 
or an accident of any kind.* At sunrise on the 10th, the 
energetic Worth, Avho was in advance with his regulars, 
moved up the shore; and after marching some distance, 
he turned the head of his column toward the rear of 

* General Scott's Dispatch, March 12th, 1847. 



INVESTMENT OF VERA CRUZ. 463 

the city, when he encountered a party of the enemy's 
outposts, who were dispersed by the discharge of a piece 
of artillery. 

The ground over which the infantry were forced to 
make their way, was composed of loose sand, which had 
been drifted by the north wind into immense hills, some of 
which were more than fifty feet high ; the openings between 
these elevations were intersected with dense forests of 
chapparal, very difficult to pass. 

Having extended his line to its full length. Worth halted 
and assumed a position, with his right resting upon the 
sea-shore, and his left flank prolonged into the interior. 
The second division followed and fell into line on the left 
of the first; General Twiggs marching his column still further 
on, spread out his corps until the city was encompassed 
with a wall of bayonets ; the line of investment stretching 
from the beach to the hills. During this movement, the 
Mexican ordnance were throwing round shot and shell at 
the invaders, but the missiles fell harmless among their 
ranks. Moving still nearer the suburbs of the city, the 
aqueduct which supplied the inhabitants with water, was 
taken possession of, and its communication with the town 
cut off; entrenchments were also marked out, and the army 
set to work opening them as soon as night fell. On the 
11th and 12th, the men labored incessantly, exposed to the 
fire of the enemy's guns, and the sharp wind of the north, 
which enveloped them in a dense cloud of sand, which 
proved actually more annoying to them than the Mexican 
shot. On the next day the norther ceased, and the line of 
investment being completed, Scott prepared to open his 
batteries ; the heavy metal belonging to which could not 
be brought on shore on account of the tempestuous con- 
dition of the sea.* 



* On the 21st, Commodore Conner gave up the command of the fleet 
to Commodore Perry. 



464 BATTERIES OPEN ON THE TOWN. 

On the 22d, the mortars having been planted, and the 
trenches opened, at 2 o'clock, P. M., General Scott sent 
a formal smnmons to the city to surrender.* General 
Morales, who commanded the place, refused to listen to 
the proposal, and declared his determination to defend both 
castle and town to the last. Seven mortars were then 
put into action,t and great destruction followed. The gun- 
boats approached the city at the same moment and opened 
a brisk fire from their guns upon that side, which was 
answered by the besieged, in an energetic manner; the 
cannonading was kept up the whole of the night, until 
nine o'clock the following morning. Two other mortars 
having been mounted, and three thirty-four pounders, 
and as many Paixhan guns of a large calibre, being 
brought into play at once, the bombardment became posi- 
tively awful. The houses on the landward side were 
blown to pieces and a great number of the besieged were 
destroyed. The Spanish, French, and English Consuls, ad- 
dressed a communication to the American leader, request- 
ing him to allow the women and children to retire from 
the terrible scene. General Scott, however, refused, as the 
enemy had abundant time, before he landed, to remove his 
families and non-combatants, and it was his duty to take 
the place at all risks. On the 25th, fom- 24-pounders and 
two 8-inch howitzers were added to the batteries, which, 
united with the guns which had been landed from the 
ships, worked dreadful havoc ; several bastions were en- 
tirely demolished, and great breaches were made in the 
walls. The inhabitants and soldiery became terrified with 
the awful desolation which the hostile army had created, 
in the once fair city, and urged General Morales to sur- 
render ; he refused to listen to them, asserting his deter- 
mination to defend the town as long as one stone stood 
upon another. The soldiery became mutinous, refused to 

* See Appendix, XXIV. f Ibid. 




PLAN OF THE SIEGE OF VERA CRUZ, BY THE AMERICANS. 

AB, Right and left extremes of line of FF, Spitfire and Vixen. 

boats in landing. G, Position of the John Adams. 

CCCCC, Sand Hills upon which the H,I,K,L, Foreign men-of-war. 

troops formed as they landed. M,N, Northern and Southern extremes 
D, Mexican Battery, of one gun, taken of the Anchorage of the Fleet. 

by the Americans. O, British Mail Steamer. 
EEEE, Position of the Gun-boats. 



29f 



SURRENDER OF VERA CRUZ. 467 

obey the Governor, and elected General Landero in his 
place ; that officer being in favor of a surrender. 

On the morning of the 26th of March, the Mexican 
leader made overtures for a capitulation ; although a ter- 
rible storm was raging at the time, the commissioners, con- 
sisting of General Worth, Colonel Totten and General 
Pillow, on the American side, and the Senors Villaneuva, 
Herrera, and Robles, on the part of Mexico, met, and on 
the 27th, signed a capitulation.* 

It was provided that the city of Vera Cruz and castle 
of San Juan de Ulloa should be delivered to the troops of 
the United States, the garrisons of the same to surrender 
themselves prisoners of war, with their arms, munitions, 
public stores, and materiel of every description. The of- 
ficers were permitted to retain their private effects and side 
arms, and both rank and file were allowed five days to 
retire to their respective homes, — the former becoming re- 
sponsible for the observance of the parole, not to engage 
in hostilities against this government during the existing 
war. At 10 o'clock, A. M., on the 29th of March, 1847, the 
flag of the stars and stripes was hoisted upon the walls of 
the city and the towers of San Juan.f 

* See Appendix, XXVI. 

f " I have said but little about the evacuation of this place by the 
Mexicans, on the 29th of March, because I have had little time. It re- 
minded me more of the ' Departure of the Israelites' than aught else I can 
compare it to — the long procession of soldiers, national militia, and people 
of all classes and sexes, as they poured out of the walls of a city, set off 
as this is, with huge, antique-looking domes, and other architectural or- 
naments. As at Monterey, there was the same throng of camp-women, 
carrying every conceivable implement of ornament and use, especially of 
the former, to say nothing of innumerable parrots, poodle dogs, and other 
absurdities of a kindred nature. It is a singular fact, that the poorer the 
people, in every country, the greater number of dogs they must have about 
them; but in no nation does the half-starved population affect the animal 
to the same extent as in this. There was one fellow, in the procession 
that marched out of Vera Cruz, that I particularly noticed. He certainly 



468 AMERICAN LOSS. 

The siege had lasted sixteen days, during which a large 
quantity of heavy shot had been projected by the various 
batteries by land and sea. The number of prisoners taken 
vi^as nearly four thousand, among whom there were a great 
number of officers of high rank; the Mexicans estimated 
their loss, during the bombardment of Vera Cruz, at nearly 
one thousand killed and wounded ; among whom were, 
unfortunately, several women and children ; a casualty, 
however deeply to be regretted, which could not be 
avoided.* The American loss, during the siege, was sixty- 
five killed and wounded ; fourteen of this number belonged 
to the navy, and fifty-one to the army ; the former were 
engaged in working a battery on shore. The officers 
killed, were Captain Vinton, of the artillery. Captain Al- 
burtis of the infantry, and Midshipman Shnbrick, of the 
navy. By the arrival of fresh troops, the army of General 
Scott was increased to thirteen thousand four hundred and 
seventy men ; a force strong enough to take, and hold the 
provinces of the south, as long as the two countries con- 
tinue to occupy a hostile attitude toward each other. 

The intelligence of the fall of Vera Cruz reached the 
city of Mexico on the 31st of March, and created a great 
excitement among all classes ; for a time, the people and 
public functionaries were overwhelmed with the disastrous 

looked like a priest, both in garb and mien ; but then as he had a fiddle 
in one hand, and a fighting cock in the other, it may be unfair to class 
him among the holy brotherhood. 1 shall not soon forget the man and his 
baggage. g. w. k." 

* We understand that General Scott delayed opening his guns upon 
the city for eight hours, to give the women and children an opportunity of 
withdrawing, assuring them of protection for themselves, and whatever 
property they might clioose to carry with them. Not an individual em- 
braced this olTer, and the subsequent destruction of women and children, 
during the bombardment, was a source of the most painful regret to the 
General and the army. Though no accurate return had been made, it 
was believed that the slain in the city, during the investment, exceeded 
eight hundred. 



WORTH COMMANDS IN VERA CRUZ. 469 

news ; but a reaction took place in their minds, and when 
Santa Anna made a requisition upon the capital, for a 
fresh body of troops, thousands em'olled themselves under 
his command : it is true, these patriotic recruits were from 
the lower orders, but they will fight none the worse for 
having plundered on the highway, or slept all their lives in 
the open air. 

In his proclamation to the nation, announcing the ca- 
pitulation of the great sea-port of the republic; Santa 
Anna attributed the misfortune, not to the valor of the 
Americans, or the superior number of their men, but to the 
interminable dissensions which had so long disgraced the 
country. " Chance may decree," said he, " that the proud 
American host shall subdue the capital of the Aztec em- 
pire ; yet the nation shall not perish : I swear that Mexico 
shall triumph, if my wishes are seconded by a sin- 
cere and unanimous effort. A thousand times fortunate 
for the nation, will the fall of Vera Cruz prove, if 
the disaster shall awaken, in the hearts of the Mexi- 
cans, the enthusiasm, dignity, and generous ardor of a 
true patriotism." 

There was, however, a more formidable enemy to be en- 
countered than even the victorious army of the States ; this 
dangerous foe was to be found in the embodied ignorance, 
superstition, poverty, and destitution, of nine-tenths of the 
people ; which led them continually to break out in revolt 
against the authority which they themselves had esta- 
blished, by recognizing the constitution of 1824; by approv- 
ing of the retm'n of Santa Anna, and his elevation to 
supreme power, by the sovereign constituent Congress of 
the nation. 

On the 29th of March, General Worth was placed in 
command of the conquered city ; the port was thrown 
open, and a moderate tariff established, the proceeds of 
which were applied to the benefit of the sick and wounded 



470 WEIGHT OF METAL THROWN. 

of the army, the squadron, and the indigent inhabitants of 
Vera Cruz. 

Note. — During the bombardment, the Americans threw the following 
number of shot : 

Army Battery. 

3,000 ten-inch shells 90 lbs. each. 

500 round shot 25 " 

200 eight-inch howitzer shells 68 " 

Navy Battery. 

1,000 Paixhan shot 68 " 

800 round shot 32 « 

Musquito Fleet. 

1,200 shot and shell, averaging 62 " 

Making, in all, 6,700 shot and shell, weighing 463,600 lbs. 

The destruction in the city is most awful — one-half of it is 
destroyed. Houses are blown to pieces, and furniture scattered in every 
direction — the streets torn up, and the strongest buildings seriously 
damaged. 



APPENDIX. 



I. 

" St. Stepheno, March 3, 1836. 
" Hon. John Forsyth, Secretary of State : 

" Sir, — I this day send under cover to you, to Samuel Ed- 
wards, Esq, my attorney in the case, a copy of the statement 
of my claims on the government of Mexico, and beg that it 
may be forwarded to him. 

"I have the honour to be, with great respect, your obe- 
dient servant. (Signed) DAVID PORTER." 

"St. stepheno, Feb. 24, 1836. 
" Hon. John Forsyth, Secretary of State : 

" Sir, — I do myself, the honor to address you again, on the 
subject of my claims, as an American citizen, on the repub- 
lic of Mexico, which, if in the opinion of the President, it 
can be done with justice and propriety, I beg may be taken 
into consideration by the government of the United States, in 
any arrangement it may make, by negotiation or otherwise, 
with that government, for the possession of Texas ; which as 
they amount to a considerable sum, and that some opinion 
may be formed of their justness, I beg leave to enter into brief 
explanations with respect to the grounds on which they are 
founded. 

" It will no doubt, be recollected by you, sir, that when you 

(471) 



472 APPENDIX. 

'jepresented the United States as minister to the Court of Spam^ 
I took the liberty of transmitting to you the decision of the 
Consulado of Havana, in favor of my claim on that body, of 
many years' standing, for eighty thousand dollars, for which it 
required only the approval of his catholic majesty to enable it 
to pay ; but as further information was wanted by him on the 
subject, from Havana, to enable him to decide as to the 
amount which the Consulado should pay me, I was offered, 
through you at the same time, a personal decoration from his 
majesty, which for obvious reasons, I declined accepting. In 
the interim, I received an invitation from the government of 
Mexico to take command of its naval forces ; and when I was 
about setting out to visit Mexico, and when the invitation had 
become public, I received, through Vincent Grey, Esq., the 
Ex U. S. Consul, in Havana, a message from the Marquis 
of Lowerville, the Captain General of the Island of Cuba, in- 
forming me that he would lose no time in adjusting my claim 
on the Consulado, to my entire satisfaction, if I would agree 
not to enter the service of Mexico. 

"I felt my honour offended at the time, by what appeared to 
be an attempt of the Captain General to induce me to make a 
sacrifice of ray principles to motives of interest; but as his 
excellency had been for many years ray friend, I made to him a 
respectful, though firm, and, as he thought, as I was informed 
by Mr. Grey, a suitable reply, for which his excellency paid 
me some compliment ; and on the whole affair being made 
known to the government of Mexico, through Mr. Poinsett, it 
agreed, should I accept employment in its service, to indem- 
nify me to the full amount of my claim on the Consulado, by 
the grant of a tract of land often leagues square on the river 
Guasacualco, in the State of Vera Cruz, the Legislature of 
which State, at the request of the general government, made 
to me the grant under the name, and under the consideration 
of military services rendered to Mexico ;* but on visiting the 

♦The laws and archives of the State of Vera Cruz may be referred to 
in evidence of the gfrant. 



APPENDIX. 473 

district of country where the land was situated, and seeing, 
from the moral and political condition of the country, that I 
could not consent to unite myself permanently to a govern- 
ment and people so unsettled and unprincipled, I took no 
measure to possess myself of the land, although repeatedly 
asked to do so by the Governor of the State and the commis- 
sioner. Mr. Thadius Ortiz, appointed to attend to the loca- 
tion of the grant; while at the same time the general govern- 
ment held out to me the offer of promotion to a higher rank, 
if I would consent to relinquish my rights as an American 
citizen, and become a citizen of Mexico, which temptation I 
invariably resisted, and of which there is evidence on file in 
the Department of State, to be referred to if necessary ; and 
under the conviction that sooner or later the province of Texas 
would come under the government of the United States, I 
proposed to the general government to exchange the land on 
the Guasacualco for an equal quantity of vacant land of Texas 
on the river Sabine, between Nacogdoches and the harbor of 
Galveston ; but my wishes were defeated by the Secretary of 
State, Don Lorenzo Zavalla, who profiting by the information 
contained in my application, secured to himself the grant of 
the land for which I had applied, and left Mexico, and thus 
deprived me of the only adequate reward which it was in the 
power of the Mexican government to give for the sacrifices I 
had made her, which may be summed up as follows : — 

^' During the time I was in^he employ of Mexico, I served 
it with zeal, activity, and fidelity, of which innumerable proofs 
were given; the Government of Spain had, by reason of the 
injuries inflicted on her, great cause to regret the non-pay- 
ment of my claim on the consulado of Havana. Captured 
Spanish vessels were constantly arriving in the harbor of 
Vera Cruz. Vessels of almost every description were cap- 
tured and destroyed on the coast, and in the harbors of 
Cuba, amounting in number to near one hundred, some of 
them with rich cargoes from Spain, among others a royal 
packet with all the correspondence ; the prisons of Vera Cruz 



474 APPENDIX. 

were filled with Spanish prisoners, where one had never been 
seen before ; the naval and military forces of Spain, intended 
for the invasion of Mexico and Columbia, were, after great 
augmentation and expense required, during the whole of the 
time I was in the service of Mexico, for the protection and 
defence of the commerce of Spain and the island of Cuba, 
and those two republics remained undisturbed by any at- 
tempts of Spain to reconquer them, and had sufficient time to 
establish order and recover their tranquillity ; the revenue of 
the country was greatly increased by the payment of duties 
on Spanish prize goods, a large amount was paid into the 
treasury of Mexico from the sale of prizes, which was expen- 
ded for the army and naval equipments, and I did not withdraw 
from the country until I had lost one son by death in its ser- 
vice ; one had been wounded and taken prisoner ;* my ne- 
phew had been killed in action ; my own life had been attempt- 
ed, and after I had experienced great sufferings, and had been 
informed by the President, General Guerrero, that the Govern- 
ment could not afford me any protection. 

" The same day I received this information, which was given 
to me in the presence of the United States Minister, Mr. Poin- 
sett, I tendered my resignation to the government of Mexico, 
and demanded of him, Mr. P., the protection of the United 
States ; and finding the President dare not, as he informed 
Mr. P. on the same occasion, issue a passport for me to leave 
the country, and could do no more than give me a letter, ap- 
proving of my conduct since I had been in the service of 
Mexico, I departed secretly the next morning, before day,f 
for Vera Cruz ; and the same day of my arrival there, got on 
board a vessel bound for the United States, leaving behind 
me most of my effects ; being fortunate in escaping from 

* He was thrown into prison in Havana, where he was released by 
the Marquis of Somenellas, who sent him down to Vera Cruz in a vessel 
which he chartered for that purpose, without demanding an exchange 
for him. 

f By advice of Mr. Poinsett. 



APPENDIX. 475 

the country before orders to detain me had arrived from 
Mexico. 

" It is proper for me to say, that I cautiously avoided any in- 
terferences in any of the domestic troubles of Mexico, while 
it could be avoided ; but that the hostility against me, may 
be accounted for, I take the liberty to mention, that while my 
friend, Gomez Pedraza, was Secretary of War and Marine, 
General Santa Anna placed himself at the head of the revolted 
garrison at Jalapa,the seat of the government of the State, and 
taking possession of the Treasury of the State, marched to 
occupy the town of Vera Cruz, which was thrown into the 
greatest alarm, and would have been delivered up to him, but 
for my consenting, at the instance of the military commander, 
and the American, and other foreign merchants to take charge 
of the fortifications, and man them with sailors from the ships 
of war. This with other precautions used by me, prevented 
the town fiiom being delivered up to Santa Anna, until the 
government could send a force against the Castle of Perote, 
which he occupied, while a strong party of the insurgents con- 
tinued to threaten Vera Cruz ; they occupying the strong po- 
sition of Puente del Rey, and cutting off all communication 
with the capital. In this manner, with a strong party in favor 
of Santa Anna within the walls, was Vera Cruz, without any 
orders from the supreme government, saved some months, 
■ chiefly by my efforts, from the horrors of a civil war, when the 
government formerly approved of the same, and ordered its 
approval to appear in the public prints; after which Santa 
Anna succeeded in obtaining his pardon from the Congress 
which had declared him a rebel and outlaw ; and afterwards, 
my friend Gomez Pedraza, was banished from the country. 
Santa Anna was then placed in command of Vera Cruz, and I 
was ordered to proceed to the capital. The day after I had 
left the former place on my journey to Mexico, of which in- 
tention, Santa Anna, as governor of the place, had been ap- 
prised by me the evening before my departure, I was attacked 
by a party of men in disguise, which followed in pursuit of 



476 APPENDIX. 

me, who were defeated after I had killed the chief with my 
own hands ; and the companion who travelled with me 
had been severely wounded by them. There are many arid 
strong reasons, for believing that they belonged to the gang of 
robbers and assassins the friends of Santa Anna, who had been 
so long instigated by him to disturb the quiet of the country, 
and that the order of General Montezuma, the Secretary of 
War and Marine, and friend of Santa Anna, who succeeded 
Gomez Pedraza, was given for me to proceed to Mexico, solely 
for the purpose of exposing me to their attempts ; as I found, 
when I had arrived there, and after being kept there several 
months, subjected to every species of suffering and insult, that 
the Secretary of War and Marine could assign no other appa- 
rent object for ordering me to leave Vera Cruz, and exposing 
me to attack on the road. 

"Soon after my escape from the country, my friend, the 
President, General Guerrero, was shot by a military tribunal 
ordered by General Montezuma ; and the country has since, 
by his means, been brought to the situation which has placed 
Santa Anna, who has been the cause of so many revolutions 
and so much misery to the country, in possession of supreme 
powder, which he now rules as the chief bandit. 

"In fine, when I had determined to quit the country, I was 
under the necessity of borrowing from Mr. Poinsett, a small 
sum of money, to enable me to pay my expenses to the coast 
from the capital ; where I should undoubtedly have been kept 
in a state of misery and starvation, but for the benevolence 
of Mr. Poinsett, who gave me during the whole of my stay 
there, shelter and food, and after an absence from my country 
of four years, I landed in a destitute state in the United States, 
where I found my family in great distress, from the failure of 
the Mexican government to comply with its engagements to 
furnish it with the means of support during the time I was in 
the service ; and thus ended my services to the government 
of Mexico, in which I lost every thing that was valuable to 
me, except my self-respect, and good name. 



APPENDIX. 477 

"It is unnecessary at the present time to go into further de- 
tails. Should the occupation of Texas by the government of 
the United States take place, and my claims be a fit subject 
for consideration, I shall be ready to furnish proofs in support 
of all the facts, of any importance, asserted in the foregoing 
statement ; and in the meantime, I beg leave to state, that the 
whole, including the pension of the mother of Captain David 
Porter,* and the prize money due to him on his death, and 
the pay and prize money due to my two sons, David and 
Thomas Porter, my own pay and prize money, and the value 
of the land in Guasacualco, given to me in consideration of 
my claim on the Consulado of Havana, which I had forfeited 
by entering the Mexican service, which are estimated, with 
the interest and the injuries consequent to the failure in the 
Mexican government to make good its engagements, at one 
hundred and fifty thousand dollars, and to that government to 
whom every American citizen may look with confidence for 
the redress of all injuries, do I submit my claim, with full 
confidence that it will do, in this case, whatever is right and 
proper. 

"As an American citizen 1 accepted the invitation to enter 
the service of Mexico, as an American citizen I remained 
there and refused to forfeit my allegiance to my own country; 
as an American citizen I seized the first moment of claiming 
the protection of the United States after I had been informed 
that Mexico could not protect me — and as an American citi- 
zen now in the service of my own government, I ask redress 
for the injuries I have received from Mexico. 

"I have the honor to be, with great respect. 

Your obedient servant, 
(Signed) DAVID PORTER." 

* The pension to the mother of Captain Porter was granted by a law 
of the general Congress of Mexico, passed immediately on receiving the 
news of his death. 



478 APPENDIX. 



11. 

Extract from the message of the President of the United States 
to the two Houses of Congress, at the commencement of the 
1st session of the 28th Congress. — December 5, 1843. 

"I COMMUNICATE herewith certain dispatches received 
from our minister at Mexico, and also a correspondence which 
has recently occurred between the envoy from that Republic 
and the Secretary of State. It must be regarded as not a little 
extraordinary, that the Government of Mexico, in anticipation 
of a public discussion, which it has been pleased to infer from 
newspaper publications as likely to take place in Congress, 
relating to the annexation of Texas to the United States, should 
anticipated the result of such discussion as to have announ- 
ced its determination to visit any such anticipated decision by 
a formal declaration of war against the United States. If de- 
signed to prevent Congress from introducing that question, as 
a fit subject for its calm deliberation and final judgment, the 
executive has no reason to doubt that it will entirely fail of 
its object. The representatives of a brave and patriotic people 
will suffer no apprehension of future consequences to embar- 
rass them in the course of their proposed deliberations. Nor 
will the executive department of the government fail, for any 
such cause, to discharge its whole duty to the country. 

"The war which has existed for so long a time between 
Mexico and Texas, has, since the battle of San Jacinto, con- 
sisted for the most part of predatory incursions, which, while 
they have been attended with much of suffering to individuals, 
and have kept the borders of the two countries in a state of 
constant alarm, have failed to approach to any definitive result. 
Mexico has fitted out no formidable armament by land or by 
sea for the subjugation of Texas. Eight years have now 
elapsed since Texas declared her independence of Mexico, 
and during that time she has been recognized as a sovereign 



APPENDIX. 479 

power by several of the principle civilized States. Mexico, 
nevertheless, perseveres in her plans of reconquest, and refu- 
ses to recognize her independence. The predatory incursions 
to which I have alluded have been attended, in one instance, 
with the breaking up of the courts of justice, by the seizing 
upon the persons of the judges, jury, and officers of the court, 
and dragging them along with unarmed, and therefore non- 
combatant citizens, into a cruel and oppressive bondage, thus 
leaving crime to go unpunished, and immorality to go unre- 
proved. A border warfare is evermore to be deprecated; and 
over such a war as has existed for so many years between 
these two States, humanity has had great cause to lament. 
Nor is such a condition of things to be deplored only because 
of the individual suffering attendant upon it. The effects are 
far more extensive, the Creator of the universe has given man 
the earth forhis resting place, and its fruits for his subsistence. 
Whatever, therefore, shall make the first or any part of it a 
scene of desolation, effects injuriously his heritage, and may 
be regarded as a general calamity. Wars may sometimes be 
necessary ; but all nations have a common interest in bringing 
them speedily to a close. The United States have an immedi- 
ate interest in seeing an end put to the state of hostilities existing 
between Mexico and Texas. They are our neighbors of the 
same continent, with whom we are not only desirous of cul- 
tivating the relations of amity, but of the most extended com- 
mercial intercourse, and to practice all the rights of a neigh- 
bourhood hospitality. Our own interest are deeply involved 
in the matter since however neutral may be our course of 
policy, we cannot hope to escape the effects of a spirit of jea- 
lousy on the part of both of the powers. Nor can this govern- 
ment be indifferent to the fact that a warfare, such as is waged 
between those two nations, is calculated to weaken both 
powers, and finally to render them, and especially the weaker 
of the two, the subjects of interference on the part of stronger 
and more powerful nations, which, intent only on advancing 
their own peculiar views, may sooner or later attempt to bring 



480 APPENDIX. 

about a compliance with terms, as the condition of their inter- 
position, alike derogatory to the nation granting them, and 
detrimental to the interests of the United States. We could 
not be expected quietly to permit any such interference to our 
disadvantage. Considering that Texas is separated from the 
United States by a mere geographical line, that her territory, 
in the opinion of many, down to a late period, formed a por- 
tion of the territory of the United States, that it is homoge- 
neous in its population and pursuits with the adjoining States, 
makes contributions to the commerce of the world in the same 
articles with them, and that most ofher inhabitants have been 
citizens of the United States, speak the same language, and 
live under similar political institutions with ourselves, this 
Government is bound, by every consideration of interest as 
well as of sympathy, to see that she shall be left free to act, 
especially in regard to her domestic affairs, unawed by force, 
and unrestrained by the policy or views of other countries. 
In full view of all these considerations, the executive has not 
hesitated to express to the Government of Mexico how deeply 
it deprecated a continuance of the war, and how anxiously it 
desired to witness its termination. I cannot but think that it 
becomes the United States, as the oldest of the American Repub- 
lics, to hold a language to Mexico upon this subject of an un- 
ambiguous character. It is time that this war had ceased. 
There must be a limit to all wars ; and if the parent State, 
after an eight years struggle, has failed to reduce to submis- 
sion a portion of its subjects standing out in revolt against it, 
and who have not only proclaimed themselves to be indepen- 
dent, but have been recognized as such by other powers, she 
ought not to expect that other nations will quietly look on, to 
their obvious injury, upon a protraction of hostilities. These 
United States threw off their colonial dependence, and estab- 
lished independent governments ; and Great Britain, after 
having wasted her energies in the attempt to subdue them for 
a less period than Mexico has attempted to subjugate Texas, 
had the wisdom and justice to acknowledge their indepen- 



APPENDIX. , 481 

dence, thereby recognizing the obligation which rested on her 
as one of the family of nations. An example thus set by one 
of the proudest as well as most powerful nations of the earth,, 
it could in no way disparage Mexico to imitate. While, 
therefore, the Executive would deplore any collision with 
Mexico, or any disturbance of the friendly relations which 
exist between the two countries, it cannot permit that govern- 
ment to control its policy, whatever it may be, towards Texas; 
but will treat her as by the recognition of her independence 
the United States have long since declared they would do, as 
entirely independent of Mexico. The high obligations of 
public duty may enforce from the constituted authorities of 
the United States a policy which the course persevered in 
by Mexico, will have mainly contributed to produce ; and the 
executive, in such a contingency, will with confidence throw 
itself upon the patriotism of the people to sustain the govern- 
ment in its course of action. 

"Measures of an unusual character have recently been 
adopted by the Mexican Government, calculated in no small 
degree to affect the trade of other nations with Mexico, and 
to operate injuriously to the United States. All foreigners, 
by a decree of the 23d day of September, and after six months 
from the day of its promulgation, are forbidden to carry on 
the business of selling by retail any goods within the con- 
fines of Mexico. Against this decree our minister has not 
failed to remonstrate. 

"The trade heretofore carried on by our citizens with Santa 
Fe, in which much capital was already invested, and which 
was becoming of daily increasing importance, has suddenly 
been arrested by a decree of virtual prohibition on the part of 
the Mexican Government. Whatever may be the right of 
Mexico to prohibit any particular course of trade to the citi- 
zens or subjects of foreign powers, this late procedure, to say 
the least of it, wears a harsh and unfriendly aspect. 

"The instalments on the claims recently settled by the con- 
yention with Mexico have been punctually paid as they have 
31 



482 APPENDIX. 

fallen due, and our minister is engaged in urging the estab- 
lishment of a new commission, in pursuance of the conven- 
tion, for the settlement of unadjusted claims." 



III. 

Documents accompanying the Presidents Message at the com- 
mencement of the First Session of the Twenty-Eighth Con- 
gress. 

Mr. de Bocanegra to Mr. Thompson. 

[translatiox.] 

" National Palace, Mexico, August 23, 1843. 

The undersigned, Secretary of State for Foreign Relations 
and Government, has received express orders from his Ex- 
cellency the Provisional President, to address the Hon. Waddy 
Thompson, envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary 
of the United States, and to give him clear and definitive 
explanations respecting an affair, the consequences of which 
are grave and serious for the two nations whose friendship 
and good understanding should be maintained, for their re- 
ciprocal interests, and for the welfare of the whole human 
race. 

Unfortunately, the events which have been occurring for 
so many years past — as well as the colonization of Texas by 
citizens of the United States as the insurrection excited, sus- 
tained, and carried through, by citizens of those same States 
— have appeared to afford grounds for doubting the sincerity 
and frankness of the conduct of that powerful Republic with 
regard to the Mexican nation, although they were bound to- 
gether by treaties, such as are esteemed sacred in the inter- 
course and relations of civilized States. This assertion has 
found a place in the series of historical truths ; and under this 



APPENDIX. 483 

view alone, it is recalled by the Mexican Government with 
the deepest regret, and because, in approaching the event 
which is anticipated, it is indispensable to refer to the most 
lamentable circumstances which have preceded it. The re- 
cognition of the independence of Texas by the Government of 
the United States, which served as an example, and even as a 
stimulus to similar recognitions by some governments of Europe 
was on the point of altering the existing good understanding 
and harmony ; and it must be considered as a great sacrifice 
to the public peace, and to the friendship professed towards 
the United States, that the Government of the Mexican Re- 
public should have contented itself with making a proper 
protest against the act, in order thus to preserve the rights of 
the nation, its dignity, and its honor. From the moment 
when his Excellency the Provisional President took the reins 
of the Government, he has conducted himself according to 
the laudable maxims, that Government should be as firm in 
the purpose to be just in their foreign relations, as in demand- 
ing justice whenever aggressions are committed against them, 
such as may place in jeopardy those rights which they are 
bound to preserve at all cost. The Hon. Waddy Thompson 
is the best witness to show that his Excellency the President 
has condemned the dark policy of national antipathies, and 
has done all in his power to render the conduct of Mexico 
towards the United States consistent, honorable, and cordial, 
in order that no well-grounded motive of complaint might 
ever exist, and that no breach might be made in the existing 
stipulations ; and it is likewise notorious that it has been 
sometimes necessary to subject the nation to great sacrifices, 
in order to keep its engagements inviolable. It likewise ap- 
pears that the Government of the United States, in reciprocity 
for this uniform system, is bound, for the glory of its own 
name, to remove all cause of injury to the welfare of the two 
nations which may present themselves. 

The Mexican Government has collected sufficient evi- 
dence, published in abundance by the American press, that a 



484 APPENDIX. 

proposition is to be submitted to the deliberations of the Con- 
gressof the United States, at its ensuing session, to incorporate 
with them the so-called Republic of Texas ; and although his 
Excellency the President hopes that an authority so circum- 
spect will defeat a design so unjust, and an attack so decisive 
on the rights of the Mexican nation over that territory, he has 
ordered the undersigned to declare to the Hon. Waddy 
Thompson, with the view that he may submit it to his Go- 
vernment, that the Mexican Government will consider equiva- 
lent to a declaration of war against the Mexican Republic the 
passage of an act for the incorporation of Texas with the terri- 
tory of the United States ; the certainty of the fact being suffi- 
cientfor the immediate proclamation of war, leaving to the civil- 
ized world to determine with regard to the justice of the cause 
of the Mexican nation, in a struggle which it has been so far 
from provoking. 

The colonists of Texas, generously received by the Mexi- 
can nation, entered into that country, and rose in insurrection, 
under various pretexts, but with the declared intention to 
wrest that territory from its lawful possessor ; and as to Mexi- 
co, they never lost their character of subjects, while those 
(all citizens of the United States) who afterwards went to sup- 
port their rebellion are regarded only as adventurers. And 
if a party in Texas is now endeavoring to effect its incorpora- 
tion with the United States, it is from the consciousness of 
their notorious incapability to form and constitute an inde- 
pendent nation, without their having changed their situation, 
nor acquired any rights to separate themselves from their 
mother country. His Excellency the Provisional President, 
resting on this deep conviction, is obliged to prevent an ag- 
gression, unprecedented in the annals of the world, from being 
consummated; and if it be indispensable for the Mexican na- 
tion to seek security for its rights at the expense of the disas- 
ters of war, it will call upon God, and rely on its own efforts 
for the defence of its just cause. The Government of the un- 
dersigned, nevertheless, flatters itself with the hope that tlie 



APPENDIX. 485 

Government of the United States will ward off from its coun- 
try and from ours the deplorable consequences of a rupture, 
by preserving the amicable relations which his Excellency 
the President so ardently desires to maintain, and will thus 
save the glorious Republic, which the immortal Washington 
founded, from stain and dishonor. 

The undersigned hopes that his excellency the minister of 
the United States will communicate this solemn protest to his 
government, and will accept the assurance of high considera- 
tion on the part of his most obedient servant. 

J. M. DE BOCANEGRA. 
Hon. Waddy Thompson, Envoy, ^c. 



IV. 



Mr. Thompson to Mr. de Bocanegra. 

Leoation of the United States of America. 

Mexico, August 24, 1843. 
The undersigned has received and read with astonishment 
the note of his excellency Jose Maria de Bocanegra, Minister 
of Foreign Relations and Government, of yesterday's date. 
At the very moment when a rumor of an invasion of the ter- 
ritory of Mexico by citizens of the United States, having no 
other authority than the public newspapers, is proven to be 
without foundation, and upon which rumor his excellency had 
addressed a very strong note to the undersigned, another is re- 
ceived of a similar character, based upon no better authority. 
The direct threat of war, which his excellency makes, pre- 
cludes the undersigned from offering any explanation whatever 
upon the subject. With a proud man or a proud nation, the 
language of menace is not only unavailing, but has an inevi- 
table tendency to defeat its object. The Government of the 



486 APPENDIX. 

undersigned has no passion for war, foreign or domestic. It 
seeks a different path of glory. Still less does that go- 
vernment desire war with Mexico. But if anything could 
excite such a feeling, it will be the constant repetition of these 
threats, alike incompatible, in the judgment of the under- 
signed, with the respect due to his own government and to 
that of Mexico ; and the undersigned requests that they may 
not be repeated. If intended for intimidation, they will have 
no effect ; and if as a warning, they are not necessary : for 
his country is always in a condition to meet any emergency. 

The undersigned begs leave to add, that " the glorious 
Republic founded by the immortal Washington" has its cha- 
racter in its own keeping, and needs no admonitions from any 
quarter to prevent it from stain or dishonor. 

The undersigned renews to his excellency Jose Maria de 
Bocanegra, Minister of Foreign Relations, &c., the assurance 
of his distinguished consideration. 

WADDY THOMPSON. 

His Excellency Jose Maria de Bocanegra, 

Minister of Foreign Relations and Government 
of the Mexican Republic 



V. 



Mr. de Bocanegra to Mr. Thompson. 

[translation.] 

National Palace, Mexico, Scptcmher, 18 1.3. 
The undersigned. Minister of Foreign Relations and Go- 
vernment, when addressing the Hon. Waddy Thompson on 
the 21st of July and the Sth of August last, with respect to the 
new invasion of the Territory of Mexico, made known the 
evidence which had been obtained, estimating it according 



APPENDIX. 487 

to its real value, as it determined the Supreme Government 
to take a step so conformable with its dignity and propriety, 
after having examined those circumstances thoroughly. The 
Hon. Mr. Thompson will be able to convince himself that 
the government, in making that communication, founded it 
not upon vague rumors, but upon advices, authentic, public, 
and official, afforded by the Mexican authorities, who cannot 
be supposed to wish to alarm their Government by uncertain 
and groundless information. The Government relied on the 
faith which should be placed in those authorities, and consid- 
ered that they, when addressing their government on a sub- 
ject so serious in all its relations and aspects, did so in the 
discharge of the functions, civil and military, which they ex- 
ercise in their respective departments. 

Governments depend upon the testimony afforded by their 
agents ; and if they are deprived of this means for the support 
of their measures, what other can they have, in order to be- 
come acquainted with the circumstances which required 
their attention? 

In the offices of the Department of State are documents 
■which induced the belief in a new invasion, and the order of 
General Houston for its cessation destroys all doubt on the 
subject. 

With regard to the incorporation of Texas in the United 
States, the principal object of this note, and on which the 
Hon. Mr. Thompson treats in his reply of the 24th of August 
last, the information is still more positive, as to an affair 
which neither is nor can be indifferent to the Supreme Go- 
vernment of Mexico, because it has calculated and foreseen the 
exaggerated pretensions of those who in the United States 
support the pretensions of the adventurers of Texas. The 
communications, public and private, from that country, its 
newspapers, and the rumors there current, and the invitation 
signed at Washington on the 5th of March of this year, are 
circumstances which cannot be treated as vague rumors. The 
fact that the General Congress of the United States has already 



488 APPENDIX. 

been occupied with the subject of the annexation of Texas is 
not only not destitute of foundation, but most positive proofs of 
it have been obtained ; and it is not, therefore one of those 
anecdotes which editors are in the habit of introducing into 
their newspapers, in order to render them more pleasing; it is 
a thing certain — most certain, unless the publications of the 
enlightened John Quincy Adams, and the opposition made 
and now in preparation against this project, at the head of 
which that personage stands, be fables. 

To insist on what is positively known, that the States of 
the South are promoting and agitating the aggression upon 
Texas, would be an offence to the enlightenment and judgment 
of Mr. Thompson. 

The probabilities are, that the Congress at Washington 
will again take up this affair at its next session, and that the 
reason, justice, and circumspection of a body, which, from 
its nature proceeds with the utmost caution, {madurez, delibe- 
ration) in affairs of less importance, will frustrate pretensions 
based solely on private interests. The undersigned hopes, 
with good reason, from the principles of justice which ought 
to preside over the deliberations of the Congress of the Uni- 
ted States, that it will never listen to suggestions, nor to pri- 
vate interests, detrimental to the law of nations and interna- 
tional law ; but as it may happen that ambition and delusion 
may prevail over public propriety, that personal views may 
triumph over sane and just ideas, and that the vigorous rea- 
soning of Mr. John Quincy Adams and his co-laborers may 
>be ineffectual, how can it be considered strange and out of the 
•way that Mexico, under such a supposition, should announce 
^hat she will regard the annexation of Texas as an act of decla- 
ration of war ? Mexico, therefore, does not threaten, and still 
■less does she provoke and excite ; what she says is that which 
•cannot be denied to her : that she will regard the annexation 
of Texas to the United States as a hostile act, inasmuch as 
'this act involves a violation of the law of nations, and particu- 
rlarly of international law, by its infraction of the first article 



APPENDIX. 489 

of the treaty of April 5, 1831, published in Mexico in 1832, 
which says: "There shall be a firm, inviolable, and univer- 
sal peace, and a true and sincere friendship, between the 
United Mexican States and the United States of America, in 
all the extent of their possessions and territories, and between 
their people and citizens, respectively, without distinction of 
persons or places." 

Mexico has always taken care to fulfil her stipulations, be- 
cause she knows what she owes to other nations ; but she 
wishes, also, that what is due to herself should be obser- 
ved and maintained ; and if on these principles she has 
protested, and does protest, she does in this no more than 
fulfil an obligation which is peculiar to her sovereignity and 
independence, without proposing, ever so distantly, to intimi- 
date or to warn, but to show what is proper for her to do. 

The undersigned herewith repeats to the Hon. Waddy 
Thompson the assurances of his most distinguished consi- 
deration. 

J. M. DE BOCANEGRA. 

Hon. Waddy Thompson, 

Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary 
of the United States of America. 



YL 



Extract of a letter from Mr. Upshur to Mr. Thomp- 
son, DATED October 20, 1843. 

Your letter to Mr. de Bocanegra, in reply to that which 
he addressed to you on the 23d of August, is certainly in no 
respect too spirited or positive. The language of Mr. Boca- 
negra's letter, particularly in its concluding sentence is highly 
offensive, and you would have been fully justified in requir- 



490 APPENDIX. 

ing him to withdraw it. The warning which you have given 
him against the use of similar expressions in future will it is 
hoped, have its effect. If, however, you should again be 
addressed in terms so assuming and so disparaging to the 
United States, you will demand that the letter be withdrawn, 
or that suitable apology for it be made. You will at the 
same time inform the Mexican Government that you can hold 
no intercourse with it, except on such terms of courtsey and 
respect as are due to the honor and dignity of the United 
States. 

In regard to the threat, that Mexico will consider the an- 
nexation of Texas to the United States as eq ivalent to a de- 
claration of war, you were certainly right to offer no explana- 
tion whatever. Should the subject, however, be again 
brought to your attention in a proper manner, you will say 
that you are not in possession of the views of your Govern- 
ment in relation to it. You may intimate, however, if the oc- 
casion should justify it, that, as the independence of Texas has 
been acknowledged not only by the United States, but also 
by all the other principal powers of the world, most of whom 
have established diplomatic relations with her, she is to be 
regarded as an independent and sovereign power, competent 
to treat for herself; and as she has shaken off the authority 
of Mexico, and successfully resisted her power for eight 
years, the United States will not feel themselves \mder any 
obligation to respect her former relation with that country; 
that we should greatly regret any interruption of our friendly 
relations with Mexico, and do not design to do any thing of 
which she can justly complain; that if war should ensue, 
Mexico herself will be the aggressor, and will be alone re- 
sponsible for all the evils which may attend it ; and that in 
the mean time the United States will pursue the policy which 
their honor and their interest require, taking counsel only of 
their own sense of what is due to themselves and to other 
nations. 



APPENDIX. 491 



YII. 

General Almonte to Mr. Upshur. 

[tbansiation.] 

Mexican Legation. 
Washington, November 3, 1843, 

The undersigned, envoy extraordinary and minister pleni- 
potentiary of the Mexican Republic, has the honor, by express 
order from his Government, to address the honorable A. P. 
Upshur, Secretary of State of the United States, for the pur- 
pose of making known to him, so that he may be pleased to 
communicate it to his Excellency the President, that the 
Mexican Government has well-grounded reasons to believe 
that, in the approaching session of the General Congress of the 
United States, the question as to the annexation of a part of 
its territory to that of the United States will be discussed ; 
and that such a measure, if carried into effect, cannot be con- 
sidered by Mexico in any other aspect than as a direct ag- 
gression. 

From what has been said, the Secretary of State will have 
seen that reference is here made to the department of Texas, 
an integrant part of the Mexican Republic ; and the under- 
signed would consider himself as questioning the understand- 
ing of the Secretary of State, if he should proceed to demonstrate 
the rights of his Government to the above mentioned depart- 
ment. For the same reason, he will confine himself simply 
to reminding the Secretary of State of the existence of a treaty 
by which the United States of America acknowledged the 
sovereignty of Mexico over the said territory ; and although 
subsequently Texas, in consequence of a revolution, excited, 
as every one knows, by citizens who emigrated from this 
country, proclaimed its independence, and this independence 
was unexpectedly acknowledged by the United States of 



492 APPENDIX. 

America, the Government of the undersigned immediately 
protested against such recognition, and declared that it would 
not, in any way, affect the rights of Mexico. 

Thus the undersigned, in consideration of the i-easons 
above exposed, and relying on the good judgment and enlight- 
ened patriotism of the next General Congress of the Union, not 
less than on the integrity of the worthy Magistrate who now 
presides over the destinies of this Republic, trusts that, for the 
sake of justice and of the friendly relations of two adjoining 
nations, which have so long existed in peace, the design 
above indicated will not be carried into effect, but will rather 
be regarded with indignation by the legislative body. But 
if, contrary to the hopes and wishes entertained by the Go- 
vernment of the undersigned, for the preservation of the good 
understanding and harmony which should reign between the 
two neighboring and friendly Republics, the United States 
should, in defiance of good faith and of the principles of jus- 
tice which they have constantly proclaimed, commit the un- 
heard of act of violence (inaudito atentado — the expression is 
much stronger than the translation) of appropriating to them- 
selves an integrant part of the Mexican territory, the under- 
signed, in the name of his nation, and now for them, protests, 
in the most solemn manner against such an aggression ; and he 
moreover declares, by express order of his Government, that 
on sanction being given by the Executive of the Union to the 
incorporation of Texas into the United States, he will con- 
sider his mission ended, seeing that, as the Secretary of State 
will have learned, the Mexican Government is resolved to 
declare war so soon as it receives intimation of such an act. 

The undersigned flatters himself, nevertheless, with the 
idea, that the circumstances which have occasioned this note 
will disappear completely, and that the Government of the 
honorable Secretary of State of the United States of America 
will employ, at the proper times, all the means in its power to 
frustrate the said plan, thus saving its own good name, and 
displaying prominently the principles which ought to charac- 



APPENDIX. 493 

terize a Government, free, enlightened, and just, in its politi- 
cal transactions. 

The undersigned repeats to the Secretary, &c. 

J. N. ALMONTE. 
Hon A. P.Upshur, 

Secretary of State of the United States of America. 



VIE. 

Mr. Upshur to General Almonte. 

Department of State. 
Washington, November 8, 1843. 

The undersigned. Secretary of State of the United States, 
has the honor to acknowledge the receipt of the letter which 
General Almonte, envoy extraordinary and minister pleni- 
potentiary of the Mexican Republic, did him the honor to 
address to him on the 3d instant. 

General Almonte informs the undersigned that he has it 
m express order from his Government to make known to the 
undersigned, so that it maybe communicated to the President, 
that the Mexican Government has well-grounded reasons to 
believe that, in the approaching session of the General Con- 
gress of the United States, the question as to the annexation of a 
part of its territory to the United States will be discussed ; and 
that such a measure if carried into effect, cannot be consider- 
ed by Mexico in any other aspect than as a direct aggression. 
General Almonte further informs the undersigned, by express 
order of his Government, that, on sanction being given by the 
Executive of the Union to the incorporation of Texas into the 
United States, he will consider his mission ended, seeing that 
the Mexican Government is resolved to declare war so soon as 
it receives information of such an act. General Almonte is 
pleased to conclude his communication with the expression 



494 APPENDIX. 

of a hope that this Government will employ, at the proper 
time, all the means in its power to frustrate the said plan, thus 
saving its own good name, and displaying prominently the 
principles which ought to characterize a Government, free, 
enlightened, and just, in its political transactions. 

As General Almonte has made no inquiry of the under- 
Siigned as to the facts on which his letter is founded, it is 
presumed that the Mexican Government is entirely satisfied 
with the information it has already received, particularly 
as that information has been deemed sufficient to justify the 
imputation of designs on the part of a branch of this Govern- 
ment, which are characterized as highly unworthy, and which 
General Almonte has thought to denounce in terms quite as 
strong as diplomatic courtesy will allow. The undersigned, 
therefore does not feel that he is called on either to admit or 
or to deny the design imputed to the Congress of the United 
States, by the Government of Mexico, even if he can be pre- 
sumed to know any thing upon the subject. 

As to the threat of war made in advance, in the name and 
by the express order of the Mexican Government, the under- 
signed reminds General Almonte that it is neither the first nor 
the second time that Mexico has given the same warning to the 
United States, under similar circumstances. The undersigned 
had hoped that the manner in which these threats have hereto- 
fore been received and treated had clearly shown to the Mexi- 
can Government the light in which they are regarded by that 
of the United States. The undersigned has now only to add 
that as his Government has not, in time past, done any thing 
inconsistent with the just claims of Mexico, the President 
sees no reason to suppose that Congress will suffer its policy 
to be effected by the threats of that Government. The Presi- 
dent has full reliance on the wisdom and justice of Congress, 
and cannot anticipate that any occasion will arise to forbid 
his hearty co-operation in whatever policy that body may 
choose to pursue, either towards Mexico or any other power. 

In conclusion, the undersigned reminds General Almonte 



APPENDIX. 495 

that this Government is under no necessity to learn, from that 
of Mexico, what is due to iis own honor or to the rights of 
other nations. It is therefore quite unnecessary that General 
Almonte, in his future communications to this department, 
should admonish this Government either to respect its duties 
or to take care of its reputation, in any contingency which 
the Mexican Government may choose to anticipate. 

The undersigned avails himself of this occasion to offer 
General Almonte renewed assurances of his high considera- 
tion. 

A. P. UPSHUR. 

Brigadier General Don J. N. Almonte, Sfc, 



General Almonte to Mr. Upshur. 

[translation.] 

Washington, November 11, 1843. 

The undersigned, envoy extraordinary and minister pleni- 
potentiary of the Mexican Republic, had the honor to receive 
the answer which the Hon. Mr. A. P. Upsher, Secretary of 
State of the United States, was pleased to make to his note 
of the 3d instant, relating to a protest which the undersigned 
addressed to that gentleman against the annexation of Texas 
to the United States of America. 

From the tenor of that answer, the undersigned has 
seen with regret that the Hon. Mr. Upshur, Secretary of 
State, has fallen into two grave errors, (equivocaciones — mis- 
understandings,) occasioned, possibly, by some error com- 
mitted in the translation which has been made of his note. 

The first of these misunderstandings consists in suppos- 
ing that the government of the undersigned imputes to one 
of the supreme powers of the American Union unworthy 



496 APPENDIX. 

views or designs with regard to the territory of Texas. 
The Mexican government has cast no such imputation — quite 
the contrary ; it has manifested its reliance on the circum- 
spection and good judgment of the American Congress. 
Indeed, how could it have anticipated (foreseen) the conduct 
of the legislative body, when that body has not yet been 
assembled ? What the undersigned and his government 
have said is, that the Mexican government has well-grounded 
reasons to believe that, in the approaching session of the Gen- 
eral Congress of the United States, the question as to the 
annexation of a part of its territory ( Texas) to the United 
States will be discussed, {se tratara.) Here it is clearly seen 
that neither the undersigned nor his government have said that 
Congress will take up (tratara) the subject of the annexation 
of Texas, but that the subject of the annexation of Texas 
will be discussed in its sessions, (en sus sesiones se tratara ;) 
that is to say, that this question will, in some manner, be 
agitated in its body ; that it will afford material for discus- 
sion, (discusion,) for which, as the Secretary of State well 
knows, it will be sufficient that a petition be presented, or 
that some member should make a proposition to the effect in 
Congress, for a discussion to take place, even though it were 
for no other object than to admit or reject such a proposition. 
This is what the undersigned and his government have said ; 
and, in order that the Secretary of State may see that what 
has been said by both is not without foundation, it will be 
sufficient for the undersigned, without need of reference to 
other circumstances in proof, to cite the exposition on the 
subject of the annexation of Texas, made on the 3d of 
March last by thirteen members, among whom is found the 
respectable name of the Hon, John Quincy Adams, ex- 
President of this republic. 

Since that time, articles have been constantly appearing 
in the newspapers of the south, and especially in the official 
journal of the government, in favor of tlie annexation of 
Texas ; respecting which, the latter paper has gone so far as 



APPENDIX. 49'? 

to say, that it (the annexation) is of such importance that the 
individual or individuals who may contribute the most to effect 
an object so advantageous for the Union, and so anxiously 
desired by the Texans, will receive the applause of the country y 
now and hereafter. It is very possible that these expressions 
may have been written without the knowledge of the Secre- 
tary of State, and the undersigned desires to believe it so ; 
but, in truth, presumptions indicate the contrary. 

The Secretary of State, moreover, seems to consider it 
strange that the government of the undersigned should not 
have hitherto made any inquiry of him as to the facts uport 
which his protest is founded ; thus giving it to be understood 
that he is ignorant of any project being entertained (entre 
manos — in hand) for the annexation of Texas to the United 
States, or that it is in contemplation (se trate) to submit such 
a question to the deliberations of the ensuing Congress. 
The undersigned would highly value a formal declaration- 
to that effect on the part of the Secretary of State, in order 
to be able to transmit it without delay to his government, as 
it would show, in a most unequivocal manner, that if any one 
in the United States be engaged in machinations (maquire) 
against the integrity of the Mexican territory, the Executive 
of the Union is entirely ignorant of it. The undersigned can 
assure the Secretary of State that such a declaration would 
be highly important and satisfactory for his government, and 
that it would contribute effectively to preserve unalterable 
the relations of friendship which actually exist between the 
two countries. In fine, the protest which the undersigned 
has made has been conditional ; that is to say, it applies to 
the case in which the government of the IJnited States 
should, contrary to the expectations of the Mexican govern- 
ment, unfortunately carry into execution the act against which 
the protest is directed. 

The second misunderstanding consists in the supposition 
that the undersigned has meant to point out to the Secretary 
of State or his government in what manner they (it) should 
32 



498 APPENDIX. 

fulfil their (its) duties, and take care of their (its) reputation. 
The undersigned has taken upon himself no such office. 
What he has set forth in his note is the hope which animates 
Mm, *' that the circumstances which have occasioned it (the 
note) would disappear, and that the government of the 
honorable Secretary of State would employ at the proper 
times all the means in its power to frustrate the project of 
the annexation — thus saving its own good name, and dis- 
playing prominently the principles which ought to characterize 
a government free, enlightened, and just in its political trans- 
actions." Nothing more is here manifested than a desire, 
a hope, (or expectation.) Whence could the honorable 
Secretary of State, then, have drawn the inference that the 
undersigned meant to admonish his government as to the 
course which it should pursue? (el manejo que debe observar.) 
Does not the Secretary of State see that the undersigned has 
done no more than second the desires of the American people, 
who wish their country to be conducted in the path of honor, 
justice, and reason ? 

The undersigned, therefore, does not know to what to 
attribute the not very decorous language [lenguage poco deco- 
roso) which the honorable Secretary of State has employed in 
saying that the observation (advertencias — warnings) of the 
undersigned were unnecessary in the communications which 
he may in future address to the Department of State, and in 
declaring that the Government of the United States is under 
no necessity to learn from that of Mexico what is due to its 
own honor or to the rights of other nations. 

The undersigned has also observed, with regret, that the 
honorable Secretary of State, in the conclusion of his above- 
mentioned note, declares that his Government has not, in 
time past, done any thing inconsistent with the just rights of 
Mexico. The undersigned is grieved to be obliged to think 
far otherwise ; and, although he might on this occasion de- 
monstrate the injuries which his country has received from 
the United States, he will dispense with doing so, because 



APPENDIX. 499 

his intention is not to revive old circumstances of difference, 
nor to irritate feelings, but to reconcile and tranquillize them 
as much as possible. 

In conclusion, the undersigned considers it his duty (secr(5e 
enel caso) to repeat to the Secretary of State, in order that 
he may be pleased to communicate it to his Excellency the 
President, that neither he nor his Government have intended, 
and that it should not have been supposed that they would 
have intended, to cast imputation (agraviar) upon the legisla- 
tive body, and much less to admonish the Executive as to its 
duties. His desires have tended solely to the maintenance 
of the peace and harmony which ought to subsist between 
two neighboring and friendly nations ; and though the un- 
dersigned has declared, by express order of his Government, 
that war will be the inevitable consequence of the annexation 
of Texas to the United States, he certainly has not done so 
with the object of intimidating the Government of the honor- 
able Secretary of State, but with the view of showing how 
far Mexico would carry her resistance to an annexation of 
that nature. And, in truth, the honorable Secretary of State 
should not regard this as any other than a very natural feel- 
ing ; as it is most clear, that if Mexico or any other Power 
should attempt to appropriate to herself a portion of the terri- 
tory of the United States, the latter w^ould not consent to it 
without first appealing to arms, whatsoever might be the re- 
sult to which the fortune of war might subject them. 

The undersigned has the honor to renew to the Secretary 
of State the assurances of his very high and distinguished 
consideration. 

J. N. ALMONTE. 
Hon. A. P. Upshur. 

Secretary of State. 



500 APPENDIX. 



X. 



Mk. Upshur to General Almonte. 

Department of State. 
Washington, December 1, 1843. 

The undersigned, Secretary of State of the United States, 
has the honor to acknowledge the receipt of the letter, of the 
11th of November, addressed to him by General Almonte, 
minister plenipotentiary and envoy extraordinary of the Mexi- 
can Republic, in reply to the letter of the undersigned of the 
8th day of the same month. The minister of Mexico informs 
the undersigned that he has seen with regret that the under- 
signed has fallen into two grave mistakes, in regard to the 
meaning of the Mexican minister's letter of the 3d of No- 
vember, which mistakes, he presumes, are the consequence 
of some error committed in the translation of that letter, 
made in this department. A suggestion of this sort, coming 
from the minister of a nation whose language is different from 
that of the United States, could not fail to put the undersigned 
upon careful inquiry as to the correctness of it. The under- 
signed regrets that this has afforded him no reason to suppose 
that the language of the Mexican minister's letter admits of 
any more correct translation into English than that which it 
has received. If the true meaning of that letter has not been 
given, it may be owing to the difficulty which already exists 
in giving in one language all the minute shades of meaning 
which may be found in the idiomatic expressions of another. 
Be that as it may, the undersigned does not hesitate to take 
the Mexican minister's interpretation of his own language, 
as given in his letter to which this is a reply ; but he is, at 
the same time, compelled to declare that he does not see, 
even in this interpretation, in what respect he has misunder- 
stood the Mexican minister. 

The first mistake into which the Mexican minister asserts 



APPENDIX. 501 

that the undersigned has fallen, is in supposing that the Go- 
vernment of Mexico " imputes to one of the supreme powers 
of the American Union unworthy views or designs with regard 
to the territory of Texas ;" and the Mexican minister now 
expressly declares that " the Mexican Government has cast 
no such imputation — quite the contrary ; it has manifested its 
reliance on the circumspection and good judgment of the 
American Congress." If this be so, the undersigned is quite 
at a loss to know why the Mexican minister should have con- 
sidered it necessary to denounce war, as the consequence of 
the anticipated action of the American Congress. If, as he 
now declares, (and as of course he must be understood,) he 
meant only to say that the subject of the annexation of Texas 
to this Union would be proposed and in some manner agita- 
ted or discussed in the American Congress, and if, as he also 
declares, he meant to express the " reliance of his Govern- 
ment on the circumspection and good judgment of Congress" 
to defeat any " unworthy views or designs with regard to the 
territory of Texas," it would seem that his interposition 
could not have been necessary, even in his own view of the 
case. He either did or did not anticipate a movement on the 
part of Congress more serious than a simple discussion of the 
measure in question. If he did, then the undersigned has not 
misunderstood him; if he did not, then the denunciation of 
war was wholly gratuitous and unnecessary, because it was 
made on a contingency which he himself did not mean to say 
was even probable. 

Whether the Mexican minister did or did not, in his letter 
of the 3d of November mean to impute to this Government, 
or some part of it, the design to annex Texas to the Union, 
the undersigned cannot understand him as meaning any thing 
else in his explanatory letter of the 11th. He avows bis sus- 
picion of such a design in his attempt to show that he was 
justified in entertaining that suspicion ; and he does this in 
the very passage of his letter in which he endeavors to prove 
that the undersigned erred in attributing such a suspicion to 



502 APPENDIX. 

Mm. Why else does he refer to the exposition made by Mr. 
Adams and other members of Congress on the 3d of March 
last, to the articles in public newspapers, and particularly to 
those which appeared in that which he styles the journal of 
the Government ? He declares that these proofs are altogether 
sufficient for him, and that he has no need to refer to other 
circumstances which, in his opinion, authorize the same con- 
clusion. 

This conclusion is fortified, in the opinion of the Mexican 
minister, by the presumption, which he thinks the circum- 
stances of the case justify, that the articles of which he 
complains as obnoxious, and which appeared in the "journal 
of the government," were published with the knowledge of 
the undersigned. The Mexican minister may not be aware 
that in the Uuited States there is no journal of the govern- 
ment. If he had known this, he would not probably have 
thought it necessary to allude to the presumed agency or 
connivance of the American Secretary of State in those 
publications. 

The undersigned adverts to this part of the Mexican 
minister's letter only to show that he has not misunderstood 
the Mexican minister in this particular. He does not com- 
plain that the government of Mexico suspects that this 
government entertains a design to annex Texas to the 
Union ; but he thinks that it was due to this government 
that inquiry should be made through the proper channels, 
and in a friendly and respectful spirit, whether this govern- 
ment really entertained such designs or not. Without such 
previous inquiry, the denunciation of war, as the consequence 
of an attempt to carry them into execution, could not but be 
regarded as an unnecessary threat. These designs were 
characterized by the Mexican minister in terms of obloquy 
as strong as the language of his country afforded. In the 
opinion of his government at least, they were highly dis- 
creditable to the United States ; and yet, professing to be 
satisfied with the proofs already before him, and without 



APPENDIX. 503 

asking for any explanation, the Mexican minister, upon a 
mere suspicion, threatened war, in the name of his country, 
as the only adequate mode of resenting so great an outrage 
upon her rights. This is an unusual course of proceeding, 
and one to which the just self-respect of this government 
can by no means submit. Whether the suspicions of Mexi- 
co were well founded or not, it was due to this government 
that she should not take it for granted that the United States 
meditated an encroachment upon her rights, real or supposed, 
great enough to justify so extreme a measure of retaliation as 
a declaration of war. 

The undersigned regrets that he is equally unable to 
perceive, from the Mexican minister's explanations, that he 
has been misunderstood in the second particular specified by 
him. In his letter of the 3d November, he expresses the 
hope, which animates him, " that the circumstances which 
have occasioned it (the letter) would disappear, and that the 
government of the honorable Secretary of State would em- 
ploy, at the proper times, all the means in its power to 
frustrate the project of the annexation — thus saving its own 
good name, and displaying prominently the principles which 
ought to characterize a government free, enlightened, and 
just, in its political transactions." Quoting these words, he 
now informs the undersigned that " nothing more is here 
manifested than a desire, a hope, (or expectation;") and he 
further says that, in expressing this hope, he has done no 
more than " second the desires of the American people, who 
wish their country to be conducted in the path of honor, 
justice, and reason." Does not the Mexican minister know 
that the mere expression of a hope may be very offensive ? 
Does he not perceive, that when Mexico expresses the hope 
that the United States will act in such a manner as to save 
their good name, in a given case, a doubt is implied whether 
they will do so or not ? And when he tells the undersigned 
that the course which he points out is necessary to " save 
the good name" of the United States, how can he be other- 



504 APPENDIX. 

wise understood than as pointing out to the Secretary of 
State, or his government, in what manner they should fulfil 
their duties and take care of their reputation ? It is not 
perceived that he improves his position, when he tells the 
undersigned that in all this he (the Mexican minister) does 
nothing more than " second the desires of the American 
people, who wish their country to be conducted in the path 
of honor, justice, and reason." Surely he must have known 
that the American people are themselves the conductors of 
their country, and that tlieir government is but the expression 
of their will. 

In replying thus far to the Mexican minister's note of the 
11th ultimo, the undersigned has had no other object than to 
vindicate his construction of the Mexican minister's letter of 
the 3d, and at the same time to intimate his expectation that 
he will not be addressed in language susceptible of a con- 
struction discourteous towards his country or government. 
So far as the Mexican minister has disclaimed the construc- 
tion which the undersigned felt himself compelled to place 
upon the last-mentioned note, the undersigned receives the 
disclaimer. He does not desire to subject the language of 
the Mexican minister to captious criticism ; and he would 
fain indulge the hope that in the future correspondence 
between himself and the Mexican Minister there may be no 
room for misconstruction or complaint on either side. 

The Mexican minister informs the undersigned that he 
would be pleased to receive from him a formal disavowal of 
.any purpose, on the part of the American government, to 
;annex Texas to the Union. The Mexican minister must be 
;aware that it is not in the power of the undersigned to give 
;any such disavowal, so far as the Congress of the United 
.States is concerned ; and he cannot fail to perceive that con- 
.sidering the attitude which Mexico has chosen to assume, 
.•such a disavowal on the part of the President cannot be 
.reasonably expected, whatever his views and intentions may 
ibe. It is due, however, to the frankness, which it is the 



APPENDIX. 505 

desire of the United States to display in all their dealings 
with other countries, that the undersigned should make to 
the Mexican minister the following explicit declaration : 

Near eight years have elapsed since Texas declared her 
independence. During all that time Mexico has asserted her 
right of jurisdiction and dominion over that country, and has 
endeavored to enforce it by arms. Texas has successfully 
resisted all such attempts, and has thus afforded ample proof 
of her ability to maintain her independence. This proof 
has been so satisfactory to many of the most considerable 
nations of the world, that they have formally acknowledged 
the independence of Texas, and established diplomatic rela- 
tions with her. Among these nations the United States are 
included ; and indeed they set the example which other 
nations have followed. Under these circumstances, the 
United States regard Texas as in all respects an independent 
nation, fully competent to manage its own affairs, and possess- 
ing all the rights of other independent nations. The go- 
vernment of the United States, therefore, will not consider it 
necessary to consult any other nation in its transactions with 
the government of Texas. The Mexican minister expresses 
his regret at the declaration of the undersigned, that "his 
government has not in time past done any thing inconsistent 
with the just rights of Mexico ;" and he declares at the same 
time that he thinks far otherwise, and that he could, if his 
intentions were not rather to soothe than to irritate, de- 
monstrate the injuries which his country has received from the 
United States. The undersigned assures the Mexican minis- 
ter, that, while he is wholly unconscious of any reason which 
Mexico has for complaint against his government, he will 
receive with pleasure any representation which the Mexican 
minister may think that he has cause to make ; and, far from 
considering it matter for irritation or excitement, he will be 
prepared to examine it impartially, and to discuss it respect- 
fully and calmly. And he further assures the Mexican minis- 
ter that it is and ever has been the earnest desire of this 



506 APPENDIX. 

government to do full justice to Mexico in every respect 
whatever ; of which it will give proof, as it has already 
given proof, whenever the Mexican minister may choose to 
make known the grievances of which his government com- 
plains. 

The undersigned avails himself of this occasion to offer 
the Mexican minister renewed assurances of his very dis- 
tinguished consideration. 

A. P. UPSHUR. 

Brigadier General Don J. N. Almonte, &c. 



XL 

Mr. Packenham to Mr. Upshur. 

Washington, February 26, 1844. 
Sir: In compliance with your request to that effect, I 
have the honor herewith to transmit to you a copy of the dis- 
patch from Her Majesty's Pimcipal Secretary of State for 
Foreign Affairs, which I had the honor to read to you on 
Saturday last. 

I have the honor to be, with high consideration, your 
obedient servant, R. PACKENHAM. 

Hon. A. P. Upshur, &c. 



Foreign Office, December 26, 1843. 
Sir : As much agitation appears to have prevailed of late 
in the United States relative to the desisrns which Great Britain 
is supposed to entertain with regard to the Republic of Texas, 
Her Majesty's Government deem it expedient to take mea- 
sures for stopping at once the misrej)resentations which have 



APPENDIX. 507 

been circulated, and the errors into which the Government of 
the United States seems to have fallen on the subject of the 
policy of Great Britain v^'ith respect to Texas. That policy 
is clear and simple, and may be stated in a few words. 

Great Britain has recognized the independence of Texas, 
and, having done so, she is desirous of seeing that independ- 
ence finally and formally established, and generally recognized 
especially by Mexico. But this desire does not arise from 
any motive of ambition or of self-interest, beyond that interest 
at least, which attaches to the general extension of our com- 
mercial dealings with other countries. 

We are convinced that the recognition of Texas by Mexico 
must conduce to the benefit of both these countries, and, as 
we take an interest in the well being of both, and in their 
steady advance in power and wealth, we have put ourselves 
forward in pressing the Government of Mexico to acknow- 
ledge Texas as independent. But in thus acting we have no 
occult design, either with reference to any peculiar influence 
which we might seek to establish in Mexico or in Texas, or 
even with reference to the slavery which now exists, and 
which we desire to see abolished in Texas. 

With regard to the latter point, it must be and is well 
known, both to the United States and to the whole world, 
that Great Britain desires, and is constantly exerting herself 
to procure, the general abolition of slavery throughout the 
w^orld. But the means which she has adopted, and will con- 
tinue to adopt, for this humane and virtuous purpose, are 
open and undisguised. She will do nothing secretly or 
underhand. She desires that her motives may be generally 
understood, and her acts seen by all. 

With regard to Texas, we avow that we wish to see 
slavery abolished there, as elsewhere ; and we should rejoice 
if the recognition of that country by the Mexican Government 
should be accompanied by an engagement on the part of 
Texas to abolish slavery eventually, and under proper condi- 
tions, throughout the Republic. But although we earnestly de- 



508 APPENDIX. 

sire and feel it to be our duty to promote such a consummation, 
we shall not interfere unduly, or with an improper assumption 
of authority with either party, in order to insure the adoption 
of such a course. We shall counsel, but we shall not seek 
to compel, or unduly control, either party. So far as Great 
Britain is concerned, provided other States act with equal 
forbearance, those Governments will be fully at liberty to 
make their own unfettered arrangements with each other, both 
in regard to the abolition of slavery and to all other points. 

Great Britain, moreover does not desire to establish in 
Texas, whether partially dependent on Mexico, or entirely 
independent, (which latter alternative we consider in every 
respect preferable,) any dominant influence. She only desires 
to share her influence equally with all other nations. Her 
objects are purely commercial : and she has no thought or 
intention of seeking to act directly or indirectly, in a political 
sense, on the United States through Texas. 

The British Government, as the United States well know, 
have never sought in any way to stir up disaffection or excite- 
ment of any kind in the slave-holding States of the American 
Union. Much as we should wish to see those States placed 
on the firm and solid footing which we conscientiously believe 
is to be obtained by general freedom alone, we have never in 
our treatment of them made any difference between the slave- 
holding and the free States of the Union. All are, in our 
eyes, entitled, as component members of the Union, to equal 
political respect, favor, and forbearance, on our part. To that 
wise and just policy we shall continue to adhere ; and the 
Governments of the slave-holding States maybe assured that, 
although we shall not desist from those open and honest ef- 
forts which we have constantly made for procuring the aboli- 
tion of slavery throughout the world, we shall neither openly 
nor secretly resort to any measures which can tend to disturb 
their internal tranquillity, or thereby to affect the prosperity 
of the American Union. 

You will communicate this dispatch to the United States 



APPENDIX. 509 

Secretary of State, and, if he should desire it, you will leave 

a copy of it with him. 

I am, &.C. 

ABERDEEN. 
Right Hon. Richard Packenham, &c. 



XII. 

In Senate of the United States, April 22, 1844. 

Read Ihe first and second times, referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations, and 
ordered to be printed in confidence for the use of the Senate. 

Message from the President of the United States. 
To the Senate of the United States : 

I TRANSMIT herewith for your approval and ratification, a 
treaty, which I have caused to be negotiated between the 
United States and Texas, whereby the latter, on the con- 
ditions therein set forth, has transferred and conveyed all its 
right of a separate and independent sovereignty and jurisdic- 
tion to the United States. In taking so important a step, I 
have been influenced by what appeared to me to be the 
most controlling considerations of public policy and the 
general good ; and in having accomplished it, should it 
meet with your approval, the government will have succeeded 
in reclaiming a territory which formerly constituted a portion 
as it is confidently believed, of its domain, under the treaty 
of cession of 1803, by France, to the United States. 

The country thus proposed to be annexed has been 
settled principally by persons from the United States, who 
emigrated on the invitation of both Spain and Mexico, and 
who carried with them into the wilderness which they have 
partially reclaimed the laws, customs, and political and do- 
mestic institutions of their native land. They are deeply 
indoctrinated in all the principles of civil liberty, and will 



510 APPENDIX. 

bring along with them, in the act of re-association, devotion 
to our Union, and a firm and inflexible resolution to assist in 
maintaining the public liberty unimpaired — a consideration 
which, as it appears to me, is to be regarded as of no small 
moment. The country itself, thus obtained, is of incalculable 
value in an agricultural and commercial point of view. To 
a soil of inexhaustable fertility, it unites a genial and healthy 
climate, and is destined, at a day not distant, to make large 
contributions to the commerce of the world. Its territory is 
separated from the United States, in part, by an imaginary 
line, and by the river Sabine for a distance of three hundred 
and ten miles ; and its productions are the same with those 
of many of the contiguous states of the Union. Such is the 
country, such are its inhabitants, and such its capacities to 
add to the general wealth of the Union. As to the latter, it 
may be safely asserted, that in the magnitude of its produc- 
tions it will equal, in a short time, under the protecting care 
of this government, if it does not surpass, the combined 
production of many of the States of the Confederacy. A 
new and powerful impulse will thus be given to the naviga- 
ting interests of the country, which will be chiefly engrossed 
by our fellow-citizens of the Eastern and Middle States, who 
have already attained a remarkable degree of prosperity by 
the partial monopoly they have enjoyed of the carrying trade 
of the Union, particularly the coastwise trade, which this 
new acquisition is destined in time, and that not distant, to 
swell to a magnitude which cannot easily be computed ; 
while the addition made to the boundaries of the home 
market, thus secured to their mining, manufacturing, and 
mechanical skill and industry, will be of a character the most 
commanding and important. Such are some of the many 
advantages which will accrue to the Eastern and Middle 
States by the ratification of the treaty — advantages, the ex- 
tent of which it is impossible to estimate with accuracy or 
properly to appreciate. Texas being adapted to the culture 
of cotton, sugar, and rice, and devoting most of her energies 



APPENDIX. 511 

to the raising of these productions, will open an extensive 
market to the Western States, in the important articles of 
beef, pork, horses, mules, &c., as well as in breadstuffs. At 
the same time, the Southern and South-western States will 
find, in the fact of annexation, protection and security to 
their peace and tranquillity, as well against all domestic as 
foreign efforts to disturb them ; thus consecrating anew the 
union of the States, and holding out the promise of its per- 
petual duration. Thus, at the same time that the tide of 
public prosperity is greatly swollen, an appeal, of what 
appears to the Executive to be an imposing, if not a resist- 
less character, is made to the interests of every portion of 
the country. Agriculture, which would have a new and 
extensive market opened for its produce ; commerce, whose 
ships would be freighted with the rich productions of an 
extensive and fertile region ; and the mechanical arts, in 
all their various ramifications, would seem to unite in one 
universal demand for the ratification of the treaty. But 
important as these considerations may appear, they are to 
be regarded as but secondary to others. Texas, for reasons 
deemed sufficient by herself, threw off her dependence on 
Mexico as far back as 1836, and consummated her indepen- 
dence by the battle of San Jacinto, in the same year ; since 
which period, Mexico has attempted no serious invasion of 
her territory ; but the contest has assumed features of a mere 
border war, characterized by acts revolting to humanity. In 
the year 1836, Texas adopted her Constitution, under which 
she has existed as a sovereign Power ever since, having been 
recognized as such by many of the principal powers of the 
world ; and contemporaneously with its adoption, by a solemn 
vote of her people, embracing all her population but ninety- 
three persons, declared her anxious desire to be admitted 
into association with the United States, as a portion of their 
territory. This vote, thus solemnly taken, has never been 
reversed ; and now, by the action of her constituted authori- 
ties, sustained as it is by popular sentiment, she re-affirms her 



512 APPENDIX. 

desire for annexation. This course has been adopted by 
her, without the employment of any sinister measures on the 
part of this government. No intrigue has been set on foat 
to accomplish it. Texas herself wills it, and the Executive 
of the United States, concurring with her, has seen no suffi- 
cient reason to avoid the consummation of an act esteemed 
to be so desirable by both. 

It cannot be denied, that Texas is greatly depressed in her 
energies by her long-protracted war with Mexico. Under 
these circumstances, it is but natural that she should seek for 
safety and repose under the protection of some stronger 
Power ; and it is equally so that her people should turn to 
the United States, the land of their birth, in the first instance, 
in pursuit of such protection. She has often before made 
known her wishes ; but her advances have, to this time, been 
repelled. The Executive of the United States sees no longer 
any cause for pursuing such a course. The hazard of now 
defeating her wishes may be of the most fatal tendency. It 
might lead, and most probably would, to such an entire 
alienation of sentiment and feeling, as would inevitably in- 
duce her to look elsewhere for aid, and force her either to 
enter into dangerous alliances with other nations, who, look- 
ing with more wisdom to their own interests, would, it is 
fairly to be presumed, readily adopt such expedients ; or she 
would hold out the proffer of discriminating duties in trade 
and commerce, in order to secure the necessary assistance. 
Whatever step she might adopt, looking to this object, would 
prove disastrous, in the highest degree, to the interests of the 
whole Union. To say nothing of the impolicy of our permitting 
the carrying trade and home market of such a country to pass 
out of our hands into those of a commercial rival, the Govern- 
ment, in the first place, would be certain to suffer most disas- 
trously in its revenue by the introduction of a system of 
smuggling, upon an extensive scale, which an army of cus- 
tom-house officers could not prevent, and which would ope- 
rate to affect injuriously the interests of all the industrial 



APPENDIX. 513 

classes of this country. Hence would arise constant collisions 
between the inhabitants of the two countries, which would 
evermore endanger their peace. A large increase of the mili- 
tary force of the United States would inevitably follow — thus 
devolving on the people new and extraordinary burdens, in 
order not only to protect them from the danger of daily colli- 
sion with Texas herself, but to guard their border inhabitants 
against hostile inroads, so easily excited, on the part of the 
numerous and warlike tribes of Indians dwelling in their- 
neighborhood. Texas would undoubtedly be unable, for 
many years to come, if at any time, to resist, unaided and; 
alone, the military power of the United States ; but is not ex- 
travagant to suppose that nations reaping a rich harvest from 
her trade, secured to them by advantageous treaties, would 
be induced to take part with her in any conflict with us,, from 
the strongest considerations of public policy. Such a state 
of things might subject to devastation the territory of contir 
guous States, and would cost the country, in a single campaignj 
more treasure, thrice told over, than is stipulated to be paid 
and reimbursed by the treaty now proposed for ratification. 
I will not permit myself to dwell on this view of the subject. 
Consequences of a fatal character to the peace of the Union, 
and even to the preservation of the Union itself, might be 
dwelt upon. They will not, however, fail to occur to the 
mind of the Senate and of the country. Nor do I. indulge in 
any vague conjectures of the future. The documents now 
transmitted along with the treaty lead to the conclusion, as 
inevitable, that if the boon now tendered be rejected, Texas 
will seek for the friendship of others. In contemplating such 
a contingency, it cannot be overlooked that the United States 
are already almost surrounded by the possessions of European 
Powers. The Canadas, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia, 
the islands in the American seas, with Texas, trammeled by 
treaties of alliance or of a commercial character, differing in 
policy from that of the United States, would complete the 
circle. Texas voluntarily steps forth, upon terms of perfect 
33 



,514 APPENDIX. 

'honor and good faith to all nations, to ask to be annexed to 
the Union. As an independent sovereignty, her right to do 
this is unquestionable. In doing so, she gives no cause of 
umbrage to any other Power ; her people desire it, and there 
is no slavish transfer of her sovereignty and independence. 
She has for eight years maintained her independence against 
all efforts to subdue her. She has been recognized as inde- 
pendent by many of the most prominent of the family of 
nations, and that recognition, so far as they are concerned, 
places her in a position, without giving any just cause of um- 
brage to them, to surrender her sovereignty at her own will 
and pleasure. The United States, actuated evermore by a 
spirit of justice, has desired, by the stipulations of the treaty, 
to render justice to all. They have made provision for the 
payment of the public debt of Texas. We look to her ample 
and fertile domain as the certain means of accomplishing this; 
but this is a matter between the United States and Texas, 
and with which other Governments have nothing to do. Our 
right to receive the rich grant tendered by Texas is perfect ; 
and this Government should not, having due respect either to 
its own honor or its own interests, permit its course of policy 
to be interrupted by the interference of other powers, even if 
such interference was threatened. The question is one purely 
American. In the acquisition, while we abstain most care- 
fully from all that could interrupt the public peace, we claim 
the right to exercise a due regard to our own. This Govern- 
ment cannot, consistently with its honor, permit any such in- 
terference. With equal if not greater propriety might the 
United States demand of other Governments to surrender 
their numerous and valuable acquisitions, made in past time, 
at numberless places on the surface of the globe, whereby 
they have added to their power and enlarged their resources. 
To Mexico, the Executive is disposed to pursue a course 
conciliatory in its character, and at tlie same time to render 
her the most ample justice, by conventions and stipulations 
not inconsistent with the rights and dignity of the Govern- 



APPENDIX. 615 

ment. It is actuated by no spirit of unjust aggrandizement, 
but looks only to its own security. It has made known to 
Mexico, at several periods, its extreme anxiety to witness the 
termination of hostilities between that country and Texas. 
Its wishes, however, have been entirely disregarded. It has 
ever been ready to urge an adjustment of the dispute upon 
terms mutually advantageous to both. It will be ready at all 
times to hear and discuss any claims Mexico may think she 
has on the justice of the United States, and to adjust any that 
may be deemed to be so on the most liberal terms. There is 
no desire on the part of the Executive to wound her pride, 
or affect injuriously her interest ; but, at the same time, it 
cannot compromit by any delay in its action the essential in- 
terests of the United States. Mexico has no right to ask or 
expect this of us — we deal rightfully with Texas as an inde- 
pendent Power. The war which has been waged for eight 
years has resulted only in the conviction, with all others than 
herself, that Texas cannot be reconquered. I cannot but 
repeat the opinion, expressed in my message at the opening 
of Congress, that it is time it had ceased. 

The Executive, while it could not look upon its longer 
continuance without the greatest uneasiness, has nevertheless, 
for all past time, preserved a course of strict neutrality. It 
could not be ignorant of the fact of the exhaustion which a 
war of so long a duration had produced. Least of all was 
it ignorant of the anxiety of other powers to induce Mexico 
to enter into terms of reconciliation with Texas, which, 
affecting the domestic institutions of Texas, would operate 
most injuriously upon the United States, and might most 
seriously threaten the existence of this happy Union. Nor 
could it be unacquainted with the fact, that although foreign 
governments might disavow all design to disturb the relations 
which exist under the Constitution between these States, yet 
that one, the most powerful amongst them, had not failed to 
declare its marked and decided hostility to the chief feature 
in those relations, and its purpose, on all suitable occasions, 



516 APPENDIX. 

to urge upon Mexico the adoption of such a course in ne- 
gotiating with Texas as to produce the obliteration of that 
feature from her domestic policy, as one of the conditions 
of her recognition, by Mexico, as an independent State. The 
Executive was always aware of the fact, that formidable 
associations of persons, the subjects of foreign powers, 
existed, who were directing their utmost efforts to the ac- 
complishment of this object. To these conclusions it was 
inevitably brought by the documents now submitted to the 
Senate, I repeat, the Executive saw Texas in a state of 
almost hopeless exhaustion, and the question was narrowed 
down to the simple proposition, whether the United States 
should accept the boon of annexation upon fair and even 
liberal terms, or, by refusing to do so, force Texas to seek 
refuge in the arms of some other power, either through a 
treaty of alliance, offensive and defensive, or the adoption of 
some other expedient, which might virtually make her tribu- 
tary to such power, and dependent upon it for all future 
time. The Executive has full reason to believe that such 
would have been the result, without its interposition, and that 
such will be the result, in the event either of unnecessary delay 
in the ratification, or of the rejection of the proposed treaty. 
In full view, then, of the highest public duty, and as a 
measure of security against evils incalculably great, the 
Executive has entered into the negotiation, the fruits of 
which are now submitted to the Senate. Independent of the 
urgent reasons which existed for the step it has taken, it 
might safely invoke the fact, which it confidently believes, 
that there exists no civilized government on earth, having 
a voluntary tender made it of a domain so rich and fertile, 
so replete with all that can add to national greatness and 
wealth, and so necessary to its peace and safety, tliat would 
reject the offer. Nor are other powers, Mexico inclusive, 
likely, in any degree, to be injuriously affected by the rati- 
fication of the treaty. The prosperity of Texas will be 
equally interesting to all, in the increase of the general com- 



APPENDIX. 517 

merce of the world : that prosperity will be secured by an- 
nexation. 

But one view of the subject remains to be presented. 
It grows out of the proposed enlargement of our territory. 
From this, I am free to confess, I see no danger. The 
federative system is susceptible of the greatest extension 
compatible with the ability of the representation of the most 
distant State or Territory to reach the seat of government in 
time to participate in the functions of legislation, and to 
make known the wants of the constituent body. Our Con- 
federated Republic consisted originally of thirteen members. 
It now consists of twice that number, while applications are 
before Congress to permit other additions. This addition of 
new States has served to strengthen rather than to weaken 
the Union. New interests have sprung up, which require 
the united power of all, through the action of the common 
government, to protect and defend upon the high seas and 
in foreign parts. Each State commits, with perfect security, 
to that common government, those great interests growing 
out of our relations with other nations of the world, and 
which equally involve the good of all the States. Its do- 
mestic concerns are left to its own exclusive management. 
But if there were any force in the objection, it would seem 
to require an immediate abandonment of territorial possess- 
ions which lie in the distance, and stretch to a far-off sea ; 
and yet no one would be found, it is believed, ready to 
recommend such an abandonment. Texas lies at our very 
doors, and in our immediate vicinity. 

Under every view which I have been able to take of the 
subject, I think that the interests of our common constituents, 
the people of all the States, and a love of the Union, left the 
Executive no other alternative than to negotiate the treaty. 
The high and solemn duty of ratifying or of rejecting it is 
wisely devolved on the Senate by the Constitution of the 
United States. jqjj^ TYLER. 

Washington, April 22, 1844. 



518 APPENDIX, 



XIIL 

Twenty-Ninth Congress — Senate. 

Jiugust 24, 1846. 
Thk Mexican Indemnities. 

On motion of Mr. Lewis, the Senate resumed, from yes- 
terday, the consideration of the bill of civil and diplomatic 
appropriations for the ensuing fiscal year. 

Mr. Benton, in pursuance of notice given, moved an 
amendment of $380,000, for the redemption of the principal 
and interest of the April and July installments of 1844, of 
payments due to American citizens for spoliations by Mexico 
upon their commerce, provided that each claimant so far 
surrenders his interest upon Mexico to the government of the 
United States. 

Mr. Benton stated the case, and the result of his minute 
exposition amounts to this : that tliese installments vi^ere paid, 
and $105,000 over, to the American agent or agents ; that 
the receipts given by Voss were on these payments by the 
government, for which a forced loan was actually made by 
Santa Anna. In any event it was clear that the claimants 
had lost their money through the misconduct of the agent of 
the United States, and the government in such case, was 
clearly responsible for its redemption. 

Mr. Evans referred to the clause in the general appro- 
priation bill of last year, appropriating $275,000 for the 
satisfaction of these installments, provided it shall appear 
that the Mexican government has paid the money, and tliat 
it is thereby discharged from all claim against her on this 
account. Mr. Evans contended, that from subsequent inves- 
tigation, it appeared tliat the government of Mexico was not 
exonerated — that she had made no forced loan — that she 
did make an arrangement witli an English house to furnish 
the installments ; but they were not furnished, and the reason 



APPENDIX. 519 

urged is that Mexico had failed to come up to the contract. 
A letter from Mr. Buchanan, Secretary of State, was read in 
support of this argument. It was evident that no money 
was ever paid, on these installments, by the Mexican go- 
vernment. 

Mr. Benton contended that the government of Mexico 
had met the payments — if not in cash, in drafts upon her 
tobacco duties and the forced loan, which were promptly 
honored, and for which a receipt was given for the full 
amount, and for $105,000 more than the drafts called for — 
$105,000 over and above the $274,000. This was the 
profits of the speculation with the English house of Dayly, 
Jefferson & Co., that advanced, or undertook to advance, the 
money, on behalf of Voss, for the claimants. 

Mr. Cass inquired if the President's message, or the let- 
ter of Mr. Buchanan, admitted that the money was paid ? 

Mr. Benton — These men (Jefferson & Co.) assumed the 
payment of the money in advance, at an interest from Mexico 
upon her treasury drafts of 1^ per cent, per month. That 
w^ill account in part for the $105,000. 

Mr. Cass referred to the Secretary of State's letter, and 
had it read, showing that the money had not been paid by 
the government of Mexico. 

Mr. Evans objected to the amendment, because it would 
exempt Mexico, whether she had or had not advanced the 
means of payment. 

A division was called, and the amendment of Col. Benton 
was lost, eighteen to twenty-three. 

Mr. Niles, in any event, contended that our government 
was responsible to the claimants, having assumed the duty 
of securing payment to them of their money. The claims 
were far more obligatory upon the government than the 
French spoliations. 

Mr. Benton read from the original Spanish letters on the 
subject of the payment of these installments — one of them a 
letter from the English house, and another from. Voss,, the 



520 APPENDIX. 

agent appointed by our government for the claimants, to 
show that these letters had been falsely translated for the 
State department ; and that out of these false translations 
had arisen probably all our difficulties with Mexico in regard 
to these payments, and probably in regard to the war itself. 
The letters acknowledged that while the Mexican government 
had not advanced the cash, it had placed in the possession 
of the managers of this business, drafts upon the treasury, 
equivalent, on presentation, to gold and silver : and they 
further show, that, upon these drafts, the two installments 
were all paid, and $105,000 over. 

Mr. Johnson, of Md., took precisely the same view of 
the case that Mr. Benton did. 

Mr. McDuffie argued that after this government had done 
all it could in behalf of payment, to its citizens, of debts due 
them from a foreign government, it could do no more. It 
could not be expected to be the insurer of payment of all 
foreign debts. 



XIV. 

Extract from the Address delivered by General Pare- 

DES, AT the opening OF THE EXTRAORDINARY GeNERAL 

Congress of Mexico, June 1, 1846. 

" I announce to the Congress, with a feeling of profound 
grief, that in the course of my administration the public order 
and tranquillity have been disturbed in the south of the de- 
partment of Mexico, and in a part of the departments of 
Puebla and Oaxaca, in the departments of Sinaloa and Sonora, 
and recently in that of Jalisco. In the south of Mexico, and 
where that department adjoins those of Oaxaca, Puebla, Me- 
■choacan, and Jalisco, there exists old and rancorous elements 
of disorder, which are developed and augmented in all the 



APPENDIX. 521 

convulsions which agitate the republic. The benefits of 
civilization have not there begun to be felt, and it would be a 
most provident and philanthropic measure to hasten to intro- 
duce them, in order that such elements of perdition, as are 
there united, may not increase and be propagated. It will 
be an everlasting stigma upon the actions in that district, that 
they have seized upon the vessels destined to compose the 
expedition to the Californias, and the abundant supplies 
which the preceding administration had provided. This 
frightful and parricidal crime was consummated in Mazatlan, 
by the military force destined to protect that peninsula, which 
the troops of the United States had begun to invade. How 
can these men ever justify their refusal to acknowledge the 
government, at a moment when they were in the receipt of 
their orders and supplies for the purpose of proceeding where 
they were summoned by the holy duty of defending the in- 
tegrity of the national territory ? The United States have 
reckoned, as a part of their resources, the disturbances which 
they have, perhaps, fomented, and have rejoiced in the idea 
that a government resolute and firm against their aggressions, 
would not be able to sustain itself against a simultaneous 
attack of all factions. Those who promote new dissensions 
which directly injure the country, do not reflect that they fight 
against its existence, and leave it at the mercy of the enemy, 
who, of old has fomented disunion among the Mexicans, 
thwarted their government, and wholly disconcerted society 
in its principles, its maxims, and its administration. The 
government has checked the progress of the revolution in the 
south, has directed the march of numerous and faithfid troops 
to the capital of the department of Jalisco, and will not leave 
unpunished the mutiny, purely military, in Sinaloa. The 
occurrences in Sonora are entirely of a local nature, and the 
government hopes that the honest inhabitants of that depart- 
ment will declare in favor of the advantages of an impartial 
and just government, which will secure them the rights that 
they have so much interest in preserving. When there is 



522 APPENDIX. 

such an urgent necessity for moving our regular troops to the 
frontier, and to threatened points, the most judicious arrange- 
ments are frustrated, because factions in this or that quarter 
disturb the public repose, and it is necessary to re-establish 
it, in order that a government may exist, for the purpose of 
attending to the defence of the country against an enemy who 
has already proclaimed himself the conquerer of the Mexi- 
cans. It is no less painful than necessary, that the country 
should know its dangers, in order that it may redeem itself, 
by being simply willing to do so, by availing itself of its im- 
mense resources. The history of the youthful existence of 
the nation contains many glorious pages, and we will not 
disgrace them by forgetting that destiny calls upon us to 
make great sacrifices in order to vindicate great interests. 

"I have approached, insensibly, the mention of the gravest 
event in our passing history. On taking possession of the 
reins of government, the present administration found itself 
met by the engagement, contracted by the previous adminis- 
tration, to receive a minister plenipotentiary from the United 
States, to treat of the Texas question. The government being 
firmly resolved to maintain, at all hazards, the most just of 
causes, and not to suffer the nation to be despoiled of that 
portion of its territory, was making its preparations for war ; 
but, at that same time, desirous of sparing the blood of Mexi- 
cans, if that could be done without derogating from the good 
name of the republic, and by dignified and decorous negotia- 
tions, determined to hear what the said minister had to com- 
municate. As was to be expected, however, from the 
deceitful policy of the United States, the minister had no 
sooner presented himself than the bad faith with which they 
were acting, was evident in their having nominated Mr. John 
Slidell, not as a minister ad hoc to treat of a special business, 
but as a minister resident — as if the relations between the 
two countries had undergone no change. The government, 
in various notes, made known to him in the most decisive 
terms its irrevocable determination not to receive him, except 



APPENDIX. 523 

in a character purely special, for which reason he asked for, 
and immediately had sent to him, passports to leave the na- 
tional territory. This has served as a pretext to the said 
States for accusing the republic of being the first to manifest 
hostility, and of provoking them to a contest, as if the hos- 
tilities could have no other origin than the refusal to enter 
into negotiations in which deceit had palpably been displayed, 
and when recourse had been had to arms, not to defend 
Texas alone, but other frontier departments invaded by the 
troops of that government. 

"The American minister not having been received, because 
it did not comport with the dignity of the nation, at a time 
when an army of the United States was on its march to the 
Rio Bravo of the North, when our ports on both seas were 
threatened by its squadrons, and when some of their troops 
were treading the soil of the Californias, I found myself 
compelled, on the 21st of March, to declare solemnly that 
peace not being compatible with the maintenance of the 
rights and independence of the nation, its territory should be 
defended until the national Congress should, while we were 
engaged in the conflict, determine to declare war against the 
United States. Their army, the head-quarters of which had 
for some time been established at Corpus Christi, advanced 
to the frontier station of St. Isabel, and afterwards took a 
position on the left bank of the Rio Bravo, opposite to Mata- 
moras. After having assembled more than five thousand 
men on the frontier, I directed the general-in-chief of our 
division to attack the enemy, and he resolved to cross the 
river, taking a position between St. Isabel and the fortified 
point of Paso Real. On the 8th, a sanguinary action took 
place between the belligerent forces, in which our troops 
gave proof of their valor, and, although with some loss, main- 
tained their ground, and the honor of our army was saved. 
On the following day the general-in-chief fell back, in order 
to take another position, where the combat was renewed, and 
was entirely unfortunate for the republic. The division re- 



524 APPENDIX. 

crossed the river, and the general-in-chief, who, according 
to his statements, still preserved four thousand troops of the 
line, without counting auxiliaries, suddenly evacuated the 
city of Matamoras, against the positive orders of the govern- 
ment, which had taken into consideration the importance of 
maintaining that post for ulterior operations, and as a depot 
for the reinforcements which had been ordered. Conduct so 
unexpected on the part of the general-in-chief has compelled 
me to displace him, and to order him to repair to this capital 
to answer for his conduct before a court of general officers, 
as provided for by the regulations of the army. The govern- 
ment, while deeply moved by these reverses in a sacred 
cause, is incessantly at work to repair them, and relies for 
that purpose on the power of the nation and the assistance 
of Congress, which, by a special design of Providence, has 
this day been solemnly assembled. 

" The squadron of the United States has commenced 
blockading the ports of Tampico, Tamaulipas, and Vera 
Cruz, and there is great probability that the thunder of the 
enemy's cannon will be directed against those beautiful 
cities. The period has arrived, therefore, when all the sons 
of the country should be summoned to its defence ; and 
when the national Congress should declare war against the 
nation which so much deceives itself, if it supposes that a 
reverse can extinguish the valor, or overcome the constancy 
and heroism of which our fellow-countrymen have given such 
signal proofs. As a citizen, and as a soldier, I am prepared 
to make every sacrifice ; and the brave men of the army, 
supported by this magnanimous people, will defend with me 
the holy rights of the country, 

" The country ardently and justly desires that republican 
institutions may ever be maintained ; and this desire, which 
the government eagerly supports, has been made known 
through all the accredited organs of public opinion. Should 
you give to the people institutions which may guarantee the 
principles of the representative, popular, and republican sys- 



APPENDIX. 525 

tem, and combine them with the stability which the nation 
seeks after so many vicissitudes, you will have satisfied all 
its w^ants, and will acquire an everlasting title to the grati- 
tude of Mexicans. Hasten to give them such a rallying 
point that, making every sacrifice, not of interest only, but 
of opinions, all desires may be concentrated, and all ex- 
ertions used in a defence of the country against its perfidious 
invaders. I assure you again of my most implicit obedience 
to your determinations. 

" In the army striking reforms have been made ; its 
strength has been augmented, and will be increased as far 
as the public necessities require. As my first engagement at 
St. Luis Potosi, was to prepare for the defence of the na- 
tion, all my efforts have been directed to that object, so far 
as the limited and scanty resources of our treasury would 
permit. 

" The power of every government is faithfully represented 
by the condition of its treasury, and it must be said with re- 
gret that the condition of ours has become most lamentable, 
through a series of misfortunes and disorders ill repressed 
from want of power in the public administration. 

" At a time when the public funds were comparatively 
exhausted, all revenues anticipated, and the government re- 
duced to the ruinous and shameful system of contracts which 
answered only the exigencies of the day, without providing 
enough for the most urgent purposes, it became a matter of 
the first necessity to reinforce the army, and provide without 
delay for its existence, which was threatened in its operation 
against a foreign enemy. 

"Under these afflicting circumstances the government, 
although deeply sensible of the importance of a faithful com- 
pliance with the engagements contracted by the nation with 
its creditors, and of the fact that credit is of the first neces- 
sity to every government, and faith in its promises, the surest 
source of its power, found itself compelled to resort to the 
extreme measure of temporarily suspending payments, a 



526 APPENDIX. 

measure justified by the necessity of providing for the safety 
of the nation, whose ruin would be the ruin of its cre- 
ditors. 

" The decree of the 2d of May, provisionally suspend- 
ing payments ; that of the 7th of the same month, deducting 
one-fourth from salaries for the term of one year ; the circu- 
lars asking aid from the governments of the departments, and 
from the venerable clergy, and other administrative and eco- 
nomical measures which have been adopted, were the only 
means which the government had, at this distressing period, 
of supplying necessities which admitted of no delay. 

" For the future, the representatives of the nation will no 
doubt provide the ample resources required by the war in 
which the republic finds itself engaged, or will furnish the 
government which is to be installed with the power of pro- 
viding them ; for, the measure of our power against the 
enemies of the country will be the resources which the trea- 
sury had at its disposal. The object of the enemy in block- 
ading our ports, is to weaken our finances, in order to dimin- 
ish our strength ; if we organize the immense resources which 
the country possesses this hostile object will be frustrated." 



XV. 



CORRESPONDENCE. 

Head-quartebs, Army of Occupation, 

Matamoras, May 30, 1846. 
[extract.] 
I ENCLOSE an original draft, found in General Arista's 
papers of an invitation to our soldiers to desert. A similar 
call was previously made by Ampudia, and has already 



APPENDIX. 527 

found its way into the public prints. The department may 
see from these documents what arms were used against us. 
I am, sir, very respectfully, 

Your obedient servant, 

Z. TAYLOR, 

Bt. Brig'r General U. S. A., Com'g. 

The Adjutant General of the Armi/j 
Washington, D. C. 



GENERAL ARISTA'S ADVICE TO THE SOLDIERS OF THE UNITED 
STATES ARMY, 

Head-Quarters at Matamoras, April ^0, 1846. 
Soldiers : You have enlisted in time of peace to serve 
in that army for a specific term ; but your obligation never 
implied that you were bound to violate the laws of God, and 
the most sacred rights of friends. The United States' go- 
vernment, contrary to the wishes of a majority of all honest 
and honorable Americans, has ordered you to take forcible 
possession of the territory of a faithful neighbor, who has 
never given her consent to such occupation. In other words, 
while the treaty of peace and commerce between Mexico 
and the United States is in full force, the United States, 
presuming on her strength and prosperity, and on our sup- 
posed imbecility and cowardice, attempts to make you the 
blind instruments of her unholy and mad ambition, and 
forces you to appear as the hateful robbers of our dear 
homes, and the unprovoked violators of our dearest feelings 
as men and patriots. Such villainy and outrage, I know, is 
perfectly repugnant to the noble sentiments of any gentle- 
man, and it is base and foul to rush you on to certain death, 
in order to aggrandise a few lawless individuals, in defiance 
of the laws of God and man ! It is to no purpose, if they 
tell you that the law for the annexation of Texas justifies 
your occupation of the Rio Bravo del Norte ; for by this act, 
♦they rob us of a great part of Tamaulipas, Coahuila, Chihua- 
hua, and New Mexico ; and it is barbarous to send a hand- 
ful of men on such an errand, against a powerful and war- 



528 APPENDIX. 

like nation. Besides, the most of you are Europeans, and 
we are the declared friends of a majority of the nations of 
Europe. The North Americans are ambitious, overbearing, 
and insolent as a nation ; and they will only make use of you, 
as vile tools, to carry out their abominable plans of pillage 
and rapine. 

I warn you in the name of justice, honor, and your own 
interests and self-respect, to abandon their desperate and 
unholy cause, and become peaceful Mexican citizens. I 
guarantee you, in such case, a half section of land, or three 
hundred and twenty acres to settle upon, gratis. Be wise, 
then, and just and honorable, and take no part in murdering 
us who have no unkind feelings for you. Lands shall be 
given to officers, sergeants, and corporals, according to rank, 
privates receiving three hundred and twenty acres, as stated. 

If in time of action you wish to espouse our cause, 
throw away your arms and run to us, and we will embrace 
you as true friends and Christians. It is not decent nor pru- 
dent to say more. But should any of you render any im- 
portant service to Mexico, you shall be accordingly considered 
and preferred. ^ ^^^^^^^ 

Commander-in- Chief of the Mexican Army. 



XVI. 

War Depaktment, 
Washington, June 4, 1846. 

Sir : I send herewith a number of copies of a proclama- 
tion in the Spanish language, addressed to the people of 
Mexico, which you are requested to sign, and cause to be 
circulated in the manner and to the extent you may deem 
proper. You will use your utmost endeavors to have the 
pledges and promises therein contained carried out to the 



APPENDIX. 529 

fullest extent. There are also sent some copies of the proc- 
lamation in the English language. 

Very respectfully, your obedient servant, 

W. L. MARCY, Secretary of War.. 

Brevet Maj. Gen. Z. Taylor, 

Commanding Army of Occupationj Texas. 

[Translation of a Proclamation in Spanish, furnished to General Taylor."} 
A PROCLAMATION 

BY THE &ENEKAL COMMANDING THE AKMY OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. 

To the people of Mexico : 

After many years of patient endurance, the United States 
are at length constrained to acknowledge that a war now ex- 
ists between our government and the government of Mexico. 
For many years our citizens have been subjected to repeated 
insults and injuries, our vessels and cargoes have been seized 
and confiscated, our merchants have been plundered, maimed, 
imprisoned, without cause and without reparation. At length 
your government acknowledged the justice of our claims, 
and agreed by treaty to make satisfaction by payment of 
several millions of dollars ; but this treaty has been violated 
by your rulers, and the stipulated payments have been with- 
held. Our late effort to terminate all difficulties by peaceful 
negotiation has been rejected by the dictator Paredes, and 
our minister of peace, whom your rulers had agreed to receive, 
has been refused a hearing. He has been treated with in- 
dignity and insult, and Paredes has announced that war ex- 
ists between us. This war, thus first proclaimed by him, has 
been acknowledged as an existing fact by our President and 
Congress with perfect unanimity, and will be prosecuted 
with vigor and energy against your army and rulers ; but 
those of the Mexican people who remain neutral will not be 
molested. 

Your government is in the hands of tyrants and usurpers. 
They have abolished your State Governments, they have 
overthrown your federal constitution, they have deprived 
34 



530 APPENDIX. 

you of the right of suffrage, destroyed the liberty of the 
press, despoiled you of your arms, and reduced you to a 
state of absolute dependence upon the power of a military 
dictator. Your army and rulers extort from the people by 
grievous taxation, by forced loans and military seizures, the 
very money which sustains the usurpers in power. Being dis- 
armed, you were left defenceless, an easy prey to the savage 
Caraanches, who not only destroy your lives and property, 
but drive into a captivity more horrible than death itself, 
your wives and children. It is your military rulers who 
have reduced you to this deplorable condition. It is these 
tyrants, and their corrupt and cruel satellites, gorged with the 
people's treasure, by whom you are thus oppressed and im- 
poverished, some of whom have boldly advocated a monar- 
chical government, and would place a European prince upon 
the throne of Mexico. We come to obtain reparation for 
repeated wrongs and injuries ; we come to obtain indemnity 
for the past and security for the future ; we come to over- 
throw the tyrants who have destroyed your liberties ; but we 
come to make no war upon the people of Mexico, nor upon 
any form of free government they may choose to select for 
themselves. It is our wish to see you liberated from despots, 
to drive back the savage Camanches, to prevent the renewal 
of their assaults, and to compel them to restore to you from 
captivity your long lost wives and children. Your religion, 
your altars, and churches, the property of your churches and 
citizens, the emblems of your faith and its ministers, shall be 
protected and remain inviolate. Hundreds of our army, and 
hundreds of thousands of our people, are members of the 
Catholic church. In every State, and in nearly every city and 
village of our Union, Catholic churches exist, and the priests 
perform their holy functions in peace and security under the 
sacred guarantee of our constitution. We come among the 
people of Mexico as friends and republican brethren, and all 
who receive us as such shall be protected, whilst all who are 
seduced into the army of your dictator shall be treated as 



APPENDIX. S31 

enemies. We shall want from you nothing but food for our 
army, and for this you shall always be paid in cash the full 
value. It is the settled policy of your tyrants to deceive you 
in regard to the policy and character of our government and 
people. These tyrants fear the example of our free institu- 
tions, and constantly endeavor to misrepresent our purposes, 
and inspire you with hatred for your republican brethren of 
the American Union. Give us but the opportunity to un- 
deceive you, and you will soon learn that all the representa- 
tions of Paredes were false, and were only made to induce 
you to consent to the establishment of a despotic government. 

In your struggle for liberty with the Spanish monarchy, 
thousands of our countrymen risked their lives and shed 
their blood in your defence. Our own commodore, the gal- 
lant Porter, maintained in triumph your flag upon the ocean, 
and our government was the first to acknowledge your in- 
dependence. With pride and pleasure we enrolled your 
name on the list of independent republics, and sincerely de- 
sired that you might in peace and prosperity enjoy all the 
blessings of free government. Success on the part of your 
tyrants against the army of the Union is impossible ; but, if 
they could succeed, it would only be to enable them to fill 
your towns with their soldiers, eating out your substance, and 
harrassing you with still more grievous taxation. Already 
they have abolished the liberty of the press, as the first step 
towards the introduction of that monarchy which it is their 
real purpose to proclaim and establish. 

Mexicans, we must treat as enemies, and overthrow the 
tyrants, w^ho, whilst they have wronged and insulted us, 
have deprived you of your liberty ; but the Mexican people 
who remain neutral during the contest shall be protected 
against their military despots by the republican army of the 
Union. 



532 APPENDIX. 



XVII. 

General Salas and his Associates. 
In the citadel of Mexico, the fourth day of the month of 
August, one thousand eight hundred and forty-six, the under- 
signed generals, chiefs, and officers, having met, and being 
penetrated with the urgent necessity which exists for reliev- 
ing the republic, forthwith, from its grievous peril, and con- 
sidering : — 

1. That from the moment when the constitution ceased to 
exist, which the republic freely and spontaneously gave itself, 
those which afterwards were framed, have not been adapted 
to the exigencies and desires of a great majority of the nation. 

2. That hence have preceded the incessant changes 
which have afflicted the country to such an extreme, that 
when she was torn to pieces, and after her external ills had 
been studiously aggravated, some spurious Mexicans have 
deemed themselves warranted in wishing to subject the na- 
tion to the most shameful vassalage by attempting to invite 
a foreign prince to govern the country, with the title of a 
monarch. 

3. That for the purpose of facilitating so horrible a trea- 
son to independence, they have been so bold as to disavow 
the sovereignty of the people, by naming a Congi'ess in which, 
with special care, were combined the most extraordinary ele- 
ments, yet those most suited to complete the ignominy of the 
nation. 

4. That all the laws which the present Congress may 
pass, and all the acts of the government being null, because 
neither the Congress nor the government is legitimate ; con- 
sequently, a just motive always exists for the nation to 
continue to demand the exercise of its incontestible rights, 
usurped by the present administration. 

5. That the administration referred to, being composed 



APPENDIX. 533 

of men devoted, some to monarchy, others to detestable 
centralism, and all unfriendly to the army, whose dissolution 
they meditated some time since, because they encountered 
in it an impediment to the accomplishment of their perverse 
views. 

6. That if these should unfortunately be carried into 
effect, the benefits of the independence would be illusory, 
to which we sacrifice our blood and our fortune for the pur- 
pose of enjoying the right to govern ourselves, conformably 
to our desires and interests. 

7. That by establishing a constitution in accordance with 
the will of the great majority of the nation, we shall at length 
possess a stable code of laws, beneath whose beneficent shade 
our great elements of power and wealth shall be developed, 
and our internal tumults forever cease. 

We have come to proclaim, and do proclaim the follow- 
ing plan for the true regeneration of the republic : — 

1. In place of the present Congress, another shall meet, 
composed of representatives chosen by the people according 
to the electoral laws which served for the choice of that of 
1824, which shall charge itself with constituting the nation, 
by adopting the form of government which may appear to be 
in accordance with the national will ; and which shall charge 
itself also with all that relates to the war with the United 
States, and the question of Texas, and other frontier depart- 
ments. The monarchical form of government, which the na- 
tion evidently detests, is excluded. 

2. All Mexicans faithful to their coimtry, including those 
who may be absent therefrom, are called upon to render their 
services in the present national movement, for which purpose 
we specially invite his excellency General Don Antonio Lopez 
de Santa Anna, the well deserving of his country, acknow- 
ledging him from this moment as general-in-chief of all the 
forces pledged and determined to fight, in order that the na- 
tion may recover its rights, secure its liberty, and govern 
itself. 



534 APPENDIX. 

3. Until the sovereign Congress shall meet and decree 
•whatever may be proper for the war, it shall be imperative 
upon the executive to dictate whatever measures may be 
urgent and necessary to sustain with honor the national flag, 
and to fulfil this sacred duty without the loss of a single mo- 
ment. 

4. Within four months from the time when the liberating 
forces shall have taken possession of the capital of the re- 
public, the Congress mentioned in the first article shall meet, 
for which purpose it shall be the duty of the general-in-chief 
to dispatch the summons in the terms adverted to, and to 
take care that the elections are made with the greatest free- 
dom possible. 

5. The existence of the army is guaranteed, and it is 
assured that it shall be cherished and protected as the well 
deserving military class of a free people ought to be. 

6. Whoever shall seek to retard the meeting of the afore- 
said Congress, or shall make an attempt against it by en- 
deavoring to infringe the freedom of its members, by dissolv- 
ing it or suspending its sessions, or shall attempt to oppose 
the constitation which it may establish, or the laws which it 
may enact in accordance with the present plan, is hereby de- 
clared a traitor to the nation. 



Manifesto of General Salas, the general-in-chief of 
the republican liberating army, now exercising the 
supreme executive power, to the nation. 
Fellow-citizens : — Placed at the head of the movement 
which was happily effected on the morning of this day, I 
consider myself under the strict obligation to present to you 
an account of my conduct; of the motives which determined 
me to act, and of the object to which the revolution is di- 
rected. Ever since the destruction of tlie federal constitu- 
tion in 1835, abandoning the path of law, we have recklessly 
rushed along the tortuous track of arbitrary proceedings. 
Advancing, as chance directed, without any beacon to guide 



APPENDIX. 535 

US, we have reached the brink of a fearful abyss, into which 
our unfortunate country is on the point of being precipitated. 

System has followed system ; constitution has replaced 
constitution ; and one set of persons has succeeded another 
in power ; but neither have the systems been based on solid 
foundations, nor have the constitutions been invested with 
the seal of legitimacy, nor have the individuals charged with 
power escaped the fatal contagion of party spirit. Thus fac- 
tions have always ruled — but the people never. Men, not 
principles, have triumphed ; we have had a thousand changes, 
but not one revolution. Hence has resulted a complete ne- 
glect of the laws, horrible disorder in the treasury, dilapidation 
of the public funds, ruinous stock-jobbing, demoralization of 
the army, utter want of concert in the administration, loss of 
credit abroad, dismemberment of territory, and the immense 
risk to which our nationality is exposed. This is no occa- 
sion for bringing to view, one by one, all the acts which have 
brought us to the present state ; nor to throw the blame on 
one party or to defend another. 

Such a review would be of no advantage ; it would only 
serve to confirm a truth that we all confess to our own con- 
science, to wit : that every party has contributed its share to 
the work of the public ruin ; and that both the victors and 
the vanquished have alike been victims, because the society 
which we form has always been so ; because, in each case, a 
faction, not a principle, has triumphed. 

The last change, however, beyond measure bolder and 
more imprudent than those which preceded it, w^as not lim- 
ited, like these, to the mere change of the person in power, 
and to the expansion or contraction of social principles. Those 
who affected it, raising their views to higher objects, aimed 
at the entire destruction of the organization of society. Ut- 
terly regardless of the character, the customs, and even the 
vices of the nation, they sought, without respect to the 
length of time which has elapsed since our independence 
was achieved, to re-establish anew, in Mexico, a form of 



536 APPENDLX. 

government for which we have not among us any of the 
bases on which it rests in Europe. The faction which enter- 
tained this design, unfortunately, found the most complete 
support in the government of January, under whose protec- 
tion it displayed its banner ; and, without any reserve, began 
to unfold and sustain monarchical principles ; blasting with 
vile calumnies our public men, bringing our affairs into con- 
tempt by means of misrepresentation or ridicule, and draw- 
ing from the past, as thus exhibited, the conclusion that the 
evils of the country arise from the republican system ; and 
that the only remedy for them consists in the measure which 
they dared to propose — the erection of a throne for a fo- 
reigner. As an effective means of attaining this end, it 
dictated the summons for a Congress, which should represent 
what is called the aristocracy, and from whose bosom the 
people were to be rejected with disdain and insult ; as born, 
in the opinion of this faction, only to obey. 

In vain the government, on installing the Congress, en- 
deavored to draw back from this erroneous course ; in vain 
was the endeavor made of changing the head of the state to 
prevent the appearance of a new era in public affairs ; in 
vain did the cabinet, on the first of August, attempt by its 
initiative measure of the 3d, to oppose a dyke to the torrent 
of public opinion, which was already overflowing its banks 
to overwhelm the oligarchical administration. On the morn- 
ing of the 4th, the citadel passed the sentence of death upon 
this system, and two days sufficed to overthrow it. I, who 
now address you, had already seen the immense mass of 
public evils ; and I could find no other remedy than a frank 
and loyal appeal to the fountain of all power, by calling to- 
gether the nation, conformably with the law which served in 
1823 for the formation of the constituent congress ; inviting, 
moreover, his Excellency General Antonio Lopez de Santa 
Anna to the post of general-in-chief, because his unquestion- 
able influence with the army was the best guarantee for the 
union of that meritorious class with the people, and because 



APPENDIX. 537 

his decision in favor of republican principles, renders him the 
firmest supporter of this system against the perfidious plans 
of the monarchical party. 

I now begin the fulfillment of the plan (programme) 
which has been announced, by publishing the summons for 
a Congress issued in 1823, without any other variations than 
those rendered necessary by the difference of times and of 
names, or any additions except those contained in the three 
concluding articles, the necessity of which is obvious. Let 
the nation then come forward to establish its government in 
entire freedom, and let the parties engage in the struggle at 
the proper time, and in a legal manner — into that struggle 
which is the essence of the representative system. Neither 
an oligarchy, nor the power of a single man, shall then de- 
cide upon our future lot. If the result of the election should 
displease any faction, it will have no right to complain, as it 
has been invited to the work ; and the constitution which 
shall be formed will be undoubtedly legitimate. 

Meanwhile, it is indispensable that all former compacts 
should end, as they are all either stamped with nullity, or 
objects of repugnance to a portion of society ; but the exist- 
ing common laws, and those which the provisional govern- 
ment proposes to publish, will supply, in some degree, the 
void necessarily occasioned by the present state of things. 
Our alliance with foreign nations will be in no wise altered ; 
because the government, faithful to its treaties, will maintain 
the worthy representatives of friendly nations, as well as 
their citizens, in the enjoyment of all the privileges and con- 
siderations required by duty and harmony. The religion 
which we profess has nothing to fear ; property will be re- 
spected ; individual guarantees will be maintained. Frank- 
ness, honor, honesty, and entire devotion to republican prin- 
ciples, are the basis of my conduct. I ask of you, fellow- 
citizens, only confidence in my intentions, and effective aid 
to sustain the war to which honor and duty oblige us. Our 
soldiers, defending our national independence on the frontier, 



538 APPENDIX. 

and the people affirming, through their representatives, the 
principles of civil liberty, and definitively organizing the re- 
public upon them, the movement of the 4th of August, 1846, 
will be, not a sedition, but a revolution. 

JOSE MARIANO DE SALAS. 

Mexico, August 6, 1846. 



XVIIL 

From the Army of the West. 
PRO C LAM ATION 

TO THE INHABITANTS OF NEW MEXICO, BY BRIGADIER GENERAL S. TV. KEARNEY, 
COMMANDING THE TROOPS OF THE UNITED STATES IN THE SAME. 

As by the act of the republic of Mexico, a state of war 
exists between that government and the United States, and 
as the undersigned, at the head of his troops on the 18th 
inst., took possession of Santa Fe, the capital of the depart- 
ment of New Mexico, he now announces his intention to 
hold the department with its original boundaries (on both 
sides of the Del Norte) as a part of the United States, and 
under the name of the Territory of New Mexico. 

The undersigned has come to New Mexico with a strong 
military force, and an equally strong one is following close 
in his rear. He has more troops than necessary to put down 
any opposition that can possibly be brought against him, and 
therefore it would be but folly or madness for any dissatisfied 
or discontented persons to think of resisting him. 

The undersigned has instructions from his government to 
respect the religious institutions of New Mexico, to protect 
the property of the church, to cause the worship of those 
belonging to it to be undisturbed, and their religious rights 
in the amplest manner preserved to them. Also, to protect 
the person and property of all quiet and peaceable inhabitants 



APPENDIX. 539 

within its boundaries, against their enemies, the Eutaws, Na- 
vahoes, and others ; and while he assures all that it will be 
his pleasure as well as his duty to comply with these in- 
structions, he calls upon them to exert themselves in pre- 
serving order, in promoting concord, and in maintaining the 
authority and efficiency of the laws ; and to require of those 
who have left their homes, and taken up arms against the 
troops of the United States, to return forthwith to them, or 
else they will be considered as enemies and traitors, subject- 
ing their persons to punishment, and their property to seizure 
and confiscation for the benefit of the public treasury. It is 
the wish and intention of the United States to provide for 
New Mexico a free government with the least possible delay, 
similar to those in the United States, and the people of New 
Mexico will then be called upon to exercise the rights of 
freemen in electing their own representatives to the territorial 
legislatures ; but until this can be done the laws hitherto in 
existence will be continued until changed or modified by 
competent authority, and those persons holding office will 
continue in the same for the present, provided they will con- 
sider themselves good citizens and willing to take the oath 
of allegiance to the United States. 

The undersigned hereby absolves all persons residing 
within the boundary of New Mexico from further alle- 
giance to the republic of Mexico, and hereby claims them 
as citizens of the United States. Those who remain quiet 
and peaceable will be considered as good citizens, and 
receive protection. Those who are found in arms, or in- 
stigating others against the United States, will be con- 
sidered as traitors, and treated accordingly. Don Manuel 
Armijo, the late Governor of this department, has fled from 
it. The undersigned has taken possession of it without 
firing a gun, or spilling a drop of blood, in which he most 
truly rejoices, and for the present will be considered as 
governor of the territory. 

Given at Santa Fe, the capital of the Territory of New 



540 ' APPENDIX. 

Mexico, this 22d day of August, 1846, and in the 71st year 
of the independence of the United States. 
By the Governor, 

S. W. KEARNEY, Brig. Gen. 



XIX. 

To THE Inhabitants of California. 

The Central Government of Mexico having commenced 
hostilities against the United States of America, by invading 
its territory, and attacking the troops of the United States 
stationed at the north side of the Rio Grande, with a force of 
seven thousand men, under the command of General Arista, 
which army was totally destroyed and all their artillery, bag- 
gage, etc., captured on the 8th and 9th of May last, by a 
force of two thousand three hundred men, under the com- 
mand of General Taylor, and the city of Matamoras taken 
and occupied by the forces of the United States. 

The two nations being actually at war by this transaction, 
I shall hoist the standard of the United States at Monterey 
immediately, and shall carry it throughout California, 

I declare to the inhabitants of California, that although I 
come in arms, with a powerful force, I do not come among 
them as an enemy to California, but on the contrary, I come 
as their best friend, as henceforward California will be a 
portion of the United States, and its peaceable inhabitants 
will enjoy the same rights and privileges as the citizens of 
any other portion of that nation, with all the rights and privi- 
leges they now enjoy ; together with the privilege of choosing 
their own magistrates, and other officers, for the administra- 
tion of justice among themselves, and the same protection 
will be extended to them as to any other state of the Union; 
they will also enjoy a permanent government, under which 



APPENDIX. 541 

life, property, and the constitutional rights and lawful security 
to worship the Creator in a way most congenial to each ones 
sense of duty, will be secure ; which, unfortunately, the 
Central Government of Mexico cannot afford them, destroyed 
as her resources are, by internal factions and corrupt officers, 
who create constant revolutions to promote their own inter- 
ests, and oppress the people. Under the flag of the United 
States, California will be free from all such troubles and ex- 
penses, consequently the country will rapidly advance and 
inprove, both in agriculture and commerce, as of course the 
revenue laws will be the same in C^alifornia as in all other 
parts of the United States — affording them all manufactures 
and produce of the United States, free from any duty, and 
all foreign goods at one quarter of the duty they now pay. 
A great increase in the value of real estate, and the products 
of California, may reasonably be expected. 

With the great interest and kind feelings I know the go- 
vernment and people of the United States possess towards 
the citizens of California, the country cannot but improve 
more rapidly than any other on the continent of America. 

Such of the inhabitants of California, whether natives or 
foreigners, as may not be disposed to accept the high privi- 
lege of citizenship, and to live peaceably under the free 
government of the United States, will be allowed time to 
dispose of their property and to remove out of the country, 
if they choose, without any restriction ; or to remain in it, 
observing strict neutrality. 

With full confidence in the honor and integrity of the 
inhabitants of the country, I invite the judges, alcaldes, and 
other civil officers, to retain their offices and to execute their 
functions as heretofore, that the public tranquillity may not 
be disturbed, at least, until the government of the territory 
can be more definitely arranged. 

All persons holding titles of real estate, or in quiet pos- 
session of lands under color of right, shall have their titles 
and rights guaranteed to them. All churches, and the pro- 



542 APPENDIX. 

perty they contain, in possession of the clergy of California, 
shall continue in the same rights and possession they now 
enjoy. 

All provisions and supplies of every kind, furnished by 
the inhabitants for the use of the United States' ships or 
troops, will be paid for at fair rates, and no private property 
will be taken for public use without just compensation at 
the moment. 

(Signed.) JOHN D. SLOAT, 

Com?nander-in- chief of the U. S. JYaval forces 

in the Pacific Ocean. 
U, S. Ship Savannah, ) 
Harbor of Monterey, July 6, 1846. y 



XX. 

General Santa Anna, Commander-in-Chief of the Lib- 
erating Army, to General Almonte, Minister of 
War of the Republic of Mexico : 

Ayotla, 1 o'clock a. M., 

September 14, 1846. 

Sir : I have received you favor of this date, acknow- 
ledging a decree issued by the supreme government of the 
nation, embracing a programme of the proceedings adopted 
to regulate a due celebration of the re-establishment of the 
constitution of 1824, the assumption by myself of the su- 
preme Executive power, and the anniversary of the glorious 
cry of Dolores. 

My satisfaction is extreme to observe the enthusiasm 
with which preparations are made to celebrate the two great 
blessings which have fallen upon this nation — her indepen- 
dence and her liberty — and I am penetrated with the deepest 
gratitude to find that my arrival at the capital will be made 
to contribute to the solemnities of so great an occasion. In 



APPENDIX. 543 

furtherance of this object I shall make my entree into that 
city to-morrow at midday, and desire, in contributing my 
share to the national jubilee, to observe such a course as may 
best accord with my duties to my country — beloved of my 
heart — and with the respect due to the sovereign will of the 
people. 

I have been called by the voice of my fellow-citizens to 
exercise the office of commander-in-chief of the army of the 
republic. I was far from my native land when intelligence 
of this renewed confidence and of these new obligations im- 
posed upon me by my country was brought to me, and I saw 
that the imminent dangers which surrounded her on all sides 
formed the chief motive for calling me to the head of the 
army. I now see a terrible contest with a perfidious and 
daring enemy impending over her, in which the Mexican re- 
public must reconquer the insignia of her glory, and a for- 
tunate issue if victorious, or disappear from the face of the 
earth if so unfortunate as to be defeated. I also see a 
treacherous faction raising its head from her bosom, which 
is calling up a form of government detested by the united 
nation, provoking a preferable submission to a foreign domi- 
nion ; and I behold, at last, that after much vacillation, that 
nation has resolved to establish her right to act for herself, 
and to arrange such a form of government as best suits her 
wishes. All this I have observed, and turned a listening ear 
to the cry of my desolated country, satisfied that she really 
needed my weak services at so important a period. Hence 
I have come without hesitation or delay to place myself in 
subjection to her will ; and, desirous to be perfectly under- 
stood, upon reaching my native soil I gave a full and public 
expression of my sentiments and principles. The reception 
which they met convinced me that I had not deceived my- 
self, and I am now the more confirmed in them, not from 
having given them more consideration, but because they 
have found a general echo in the hearts of my fellow- 
citizens. 



544 APPENDIX. 

I come, then, to carry my views into operation, and in 
compliance with the mandate of my country. She calls me 
as commander-in-chief of the army ; and in that capacity I 
stand ready to serve. The enemy occupies our harbors ; he 
is despoiling us of the richest of our territories, and threatens 
us with his domination ! I go, then, to the head of the Mexi- 
can army — an army the offspring (eijo) of a free people ; and, 
joined with it, I will fulfill my utmost duty in opposing the 
enemies of my country. I will die fighting, or lead the va- 
liant Mexicans to the enjoyment of a triumph to which they 
are alike entitled by justice, by their warlike character, and 
by the dignity and enthusiasm which they have preserved of 
a free nation. The war is a necessity of immediate impor- 
tance ; every day's delay is an age' of infamy ; I cannot re- 
cede from the position which the nation has assigned me : I 
must go forward, unless I would draw upon myself the cen- 
sure due to ingratitude for the favors with which I have been 
overwhelmed by my fellow-citizens; or unless I would behold 
her humbled and suffering under a perpetuation of her mis- 
fortunes. 

Your excellency will at once perceive how great an error 
I should commit in assuming the supreme magistracy, when 
my duty calls me to the field to fight against the enemies of 
the republic. I should disgrace myself, if, when called to 
the point of danger, I should spring to that of power. Nei- 
ther my loyalty nor my honor requires the abandonment of 
interests so dear to me. The single motive of my heart is to 
offer my compatriots the sacrifice of that blood which yet 
runs in my veins. I wish them to know that I consecrate 
myself entirely to their service, as a soldier ought to do, and 
am only desirous further to be permitted to point out the 
course by which Mexico may attain the rank to which her 
destinies call her. 

In marching against the enemy, and declining to accept 
of power, I give a proof of the sincerity of my sentiments ; 
leaving the nation her own mistress, at liberty to dispose of 



APPENDIX. 545 

herself as she sees fit. The elections for members of Con- 
gress to form the constitution which the people wish to adopt 
are proceeding. That Congress will now soon convene, and 
while I shall be engaged in the conflict in armed defence of 
her independence, the nation will place such safeguards around 
her liberties as may best suit herself. 

If I should permit myself for a single moment to take the 
reins of government the sincerity of my promises would be 
rendered questionable, and no confidence could be placed in 
them. 

I am resolved that they shall not be falsified, for in their 
redemption I behold the general good, as well as my honor 
as a Mexican and a soldier. I cannot abandon this posi- 
tion. The existing government has pursued a course with 
which the nation has shown itself content, and I have no de- 
sire to subvert it by taking its place. I feel abundant plea- 
sure in remaining where I am, and flatter myself that the- 
nation will applaud my choice. I shall joyfully accept such 
tasks as she shall continue to impose upon me ; and, w^hile 
she is engaged in promoting the objects of civilization, I will 
brave every danger in supporting its benefits, even at the cost 
of my existence. 

Will your excellency have the goodness to tender to the 
supreme government my sincere thanks for their kindness. I 
will personally repeat them to-morrow, for which purpose I 
propose to call at the palace. I shall there embrace my 
friends, and, hastily pressing them to my heart, bid them a 
tender farewell, and set out for the scene of war, to lend; 
my aid to serve my country, or to perish amongst its ruins. 

I beg to repeat to your excellency assurances of my con- 
tinued and special esteem. 

ANTONIO LOPEZ DE SANTA ANNA. 
35 



546 APPENDIX. 



XXL 

CIRCULAR 

ADDRESSED BY THE MINISTER OF EXTERIOR AND INTERIOR RELATIONS TO THE 
GOVERNORS OF THE SEVERAL MEXICAN STATES. 

Most Excellent Sir : On the 14th instant the port of 
Tampico was occupied by the American troops under the 
terms which you will see in the accompanying documents. 
This event, although expected, and giving no triumph to our 
enemies, since they only occupy what has been abandoned, 
aggravates nevertheless the situation of the republic ; for, re- 
quiring new means of defence, it likewise imposes new duties 
and couples new sacrifices. Under these circumstances the 
government has thought proper to address itself to the nation ; 
and, with this view, his excellency the General charged with 
the supreme executive power, has ordered this department to 
inform you officially of the true state of affairs. 

The capitulation of Monterey having been disproved by 
the United States, the American army advanced on Saltillo, 
and having occupied it, is now directed towards San Luis 
Potosi. The invasion will probably extend to the state of 
Zacatecas, and there are grounds for believing that those of 
Sonora and Chihuahua will suffer a similar fate. At the same 
time the state of Durango is laid waste by savages, who, di- 
rected by American officers, have nearly reached the capital. 
Masters of a great part of New Leon and Taraaulipas, the 
invaders have extended their line by the occupation of Tam- 
pico, and are preparing perhaps to attempt a blow at Al- 
varado and Vera Cruz. In the state of Chiapas there are 
fears that the government of Guatemala, aided and urged by 
the United States, designs to invade our territory, attempting 
to take possession of Zoconusco, and even of Chiapas itself. 
Tobasco, finally, is blockaded, and in part subject to the 
invaders, who also occupy the states of California and New 
Mexico. 



APPENDIX. 547 

The picture which I have just sketched is certainly sad, 
but true ; and you will see by it that the whole republic is 
menaced, that the peril is universal, and that the moment 
has consequently arrived in which any sacrifice should be 
esteemed small, for the day approaches which is to decide 
the existence of the nation. The government which com- 
menced in August found the treasury exhausted, since the 
little which remained in it scarcely sufficed to put in march 
the first brigades of the army ; it found the magazines 
empty, confidence destroyed, and public spirit dead, for the 
administration which had just passed away had caused to be 
lost the hope of triumph. At the cost of incessant wakeful- 
ness and sacrifices, which impartial history will some day 
appreciate, the government has succeeded, in less than four 
months, in organizing a respectable army, in raising every- 
where the national guard, and in vividly exciting enthusiasm 
and the sacred love of the country. The "well deserving" 
General Santa Anna, who came at the call of the people, is 
occupied incessantly in the discipline of new corps, and in 
preparing the army for the approaching campaign ; and the 
government, anxious to fulfil its duties, labors day and night 
to provide the necessary resources ; but ordinary ones are 
not sufficient, and it is necessary to recur to those which, 
under ordinary circumstances, would be very justly con- 
demned. The revenues being separated in consequence of 
the happy re-establishment of the federal constitution, the 
government of the Union now lacks the most productive part 
of the interior ones, and on account of the blockade realizes 
nothing of the large products of the maritime custom-houses ; 
so that, while the expenses have extraordinarily increased, 
the means have extraordinarily diminished. 

Thus, while laboring incessantly at the rapid establish- 
ment of the federal system, watching over public order, 
attending with ardor to the organization of the national 
guard, and amid the gravest cares required by the execu- 
tive departments in critical epochs, that which the govern- 



548 APPENDIX. 

ment has preferred, that which has most occupied its time in 
this complication of business, has been to procure the neces- 
sary means to sustain the war ; for without these the army- 
would perish before seeing the enemy — and this idea is 
dreadful ! The sovereign Congress will assemble in a few 
days ; and the government, knowing by its own experience 
the distress caused by the want of means, wishes to divert it 
in part from that august assembly ; and for this purpose has 
directed that you stimulate the inhabitants of your state to 
contribute to the prompt influence of the public funds in the 
manner that their patriotism may dictate, whether with do- 
nations in money, with cattle, grain, or munitions for the 
army ; for, I repeat it, the hour of sacrifice has come. 

How, in effect, are the rich proprietors benefited by their 
immense estates, if they are to be shared by the adventurers 
who form almost the whole of the invading army, and who 
are stimulated, not by glory, but by the desire of tasting the 
delights of our beautiful country ? How are the rich mer- 
chants benefited by their shops, if those brilliant displays of 
luxury but serve to satiate the avarice of soldiers, who, with 
no other god than gold, and no other country but that which 
feeds them, come to our cities to enjoy pleasures which they 
had hardly dared to dream of? Far from the Government 
be the idea that there can be any Mexicans who look forward 
to the conveniences of peace while governed by the Ameri- 
cans ; for such peace would be ignominious, and those con- 
veniences an incessant remorse, since they would be the re- 
sult of not having made, in time, the sacrifices now required 
by the defence of the nation. 

In this war it is not merely the question to recover the 
usurped territory, but to hinder new usurpations, to save the 
honor of our own name, to defend the national independence. 
The question is, whether Mexico shall be, or cease to be, a 
people worthy of figuring in the register of free nations ? 
Whether our religion, our language, our manners, shall be 
preserved ? Whether, finally, the race of the north is to 



APPENDIX. 549 

domineer in the new world over the generous race of the 
south ! This is the terrible question now to be decided ; and 
between glory and shame there is no mean to choose. Either 
transmit to our children a name exalted by victory and a 
rich, great, and sovereign country, or we oblige them to 
curse our memory, and to water with tears of despair the 
cities governed by Americans, the districts depopulated by 
the tread of the savage. 

That proud confederacy, whose government insults with 
its acts the ashes of Washington ; that population which is 
composed in part of avaricious merchants, for whom all 
grand ideas, all generous thoughts, are subordinate to in- 
terest ; those pretended democratic states who excommunicate 
all who have a single drop of the blood which the whites 
would consider as distinct from their own, and who traffic 
unworthily in the creatures of God, are likewise risking their 
existence in this war ; for they have in their bosom a thou- 
sand conflicting elements. For there also are parties, there 
also are sensible men who acknowledge the justice of our 
cause ; there also are feeling and honorable hearts who can- 
not tolerate the traffic in human flesh ; and because the 
enormous expenses which they must defray have exhausted 
the treasury, and the day is not distant when contributions 
will become necessary ; and your excellency knows that a 
single contribution will cause the people of the United States 
to rise ; for where men calculate by figures, these, and not 
duty, are the rule of their actions. 

This imminent peril is not concealed from the Ameri- 
cans ; and now that they have seen the Mexican nation rise 
up to repel them, they appeal to calumny as an efficacious 
means of sowing discord and inspiring mistrust. With that 
ignoble end it has been given out that General Santa Anna is 
compromited to make peace, flattered with the hope of ob- 
taining the control of the republic. But that idea cannot be 
sustained when it is considered that General Santa Anna 
need not be a traitor to become the first man of Mexico ; 



5§0 APPENDIX. 

and that he need not travel that road of perfidy and shame 
to reach the temple of immortality. More easy and sure is 
his present path ; and the government which knows his noble 
sentiments and is convinced of his loyalty and patriotism, 
repels in the face of the nation the infamous calumny, and 
protests in its name against an idea only intended to sow 
doubt, and thus reap indifference. Perhaps at other epochs 
peace might be possible ; but after the first shot is fired, and 
the first drop of blood is shed, there can be no negotiation 
except in the case where that negotiation so insures our 
rights, and so leaves our honor unstained, that the civilized 
world shall respect and even our enemies esteem us. The 
sovereign Congress then, if it thinks proper, can make peace ; 
the [executive] government neither can nor would do other 
than make war. 

It is true that the nation, distracted by so many revolu- 
tions, is not now as pow^erful as when it took its place among 
sovereign states ; but the hour has arrived to show to the 
eyes of Europe that, if its energies are weakened by adver- 
sity, its patriotism and its valor have never been crushed by 
fear, and that it is absolutely decided that its name shall be 
erased from the catalogue of nations by the edge of the 
American sword before subscribing its ignominy and infamy 
in a shameful treaty. 

Such are the sentiments of the government ; and in mani- 
festing them to your excellency, with the assurance that such 
wdll be those of the state under your worthy charge, I reite- 
rate my just regard and due consideration. 

God and Liberty. 

LAFRAGNA. 

Mexico, November 27, 1846. 



APPENDIX. 551 



XXII. 



To Col A. W. Doniphan, commanding American forces 

IN THE STATE OF ChIHUAHUA. 

Head-quarters Bat. Mo. Light Artillery, 
Camp near Chihuahua, Mexico, March 2, 1847. 

Sir : I have the honor to report, that, agreeably to your 
instructions, I left the camp near Sanz, on the morning of the 
28th ultimo, accompanied by my adjutant. Lieutenant L. D. 
Walker, and non-commissioned staff, and proceeded in ad- 
vance to a position commanding a full view of the enemy's 
camp and entrenchments, situated about four miles distant 
from this point. The enemy was discovered to be in force, 
awaiting our approach, having occupied the ridge and neigh- 
boring heights about Sacramento. 

Upon examination, it was ascertained that his entrench- 
ments and redoubts occupied the brow of an elevation ex- 
tending across the ridge between the Arroyo Seco and that 
of Sacramento — both of which, at this point, cross the valley 
from the elevated ridge of mountains in the rear of the vil- 
lage of Torreon, known by the name of the Sierre de Viclo- 
rianto, that of Nombreo de Dios on the east, and through 
which runs the Rio del Nombreo de Dios. This valley is 
about four miles in width, and entrenched by the enemy en- 
tirely across from mountain to mountain, the road to the city 
of Chihuahua running directly through its centre — and of 
necessity passing near to, and crossing the Rio Sacramento 
at the Rancho Sacramento, a strongly built and fortified 
house, with adjoining corrals, and at other enclosures, be- 
longing to Angel Trias, the Governor of Chihuahua. 

From observation, it was ascertained that the enemy had 
occupied the site between these hills, and that the batteries 
upon them were supported by infantry — his cavalry being in 
advanced positions, formed into three columns, between the 



552 APPENDIX. 

Arroyo Seco and our advance. During these observations, 
the enemy's advanced guard discovering my party, ap- 
proached rapidly, with the evident intention of intercepting 
it, but being met by that of our troops which I had sent for- 
ward, it as rapidly retreated. At this time also, the three 
columns of the enemy's cavalry re-crossed the Arroyo Seco, 
and retired behind their entrenchments. I there approached 
within six hundred yards of the most advanced redoubt, 
from which point the enemy's formation was plainly dis- 
cernable. 

The entrenchments consisted of a line, with intervals 
composed of circular redoubts, from three to five hundred 
yards' interval, with entrenchments between each, covering 
batteries partly masked by cavalry. The redoubt nearest to 
my position contained two pieces of cannon, supported by 
several hundred infantry. The enemy's right and left were 
strong positions — the Cerro Frijoles on his right, and having 
high precipitous sides, with a redoubt commanding the sur- 
rounding country, and the pass leading towards Chihuahua, 
through the Arroyo Seco. The Cerro Sacramento on his left, 
consisting of a pile of immense volcanic rocks, surmounted 
by a battery, commanding the main road to Chihuahua, 
leading directly in front of the enemy's entrenchments ; — 
crossing the Rio Sacramento at the rancho, directly under its 
fire, and also commanding the road from Terreon, imme- 
diately in its rear, the crossing of the main road over the 
Arroyo Seco, at the point from which my reconnoisance was 
imade, laid directly under the fire of the batteries on the 
•enemy's right, which rendered it necessary to ascertain the 
practicability of a route more distant from the enemy's en- 
trenchments. 

The passage was found to be practicable, with some little 
labor, and a point selected as the best for the passage of the 
artillery and wagons, and merchant trains. The whole point 
of the enemy's line of entrenchments appeared to be about 
two miles, and his force three thousand men. The artillery 



APPENDIX. 553 

being masked, the number and calibre of the cannon could 
not be estimated. Further, I have the honor to report, that 
the battalion of artillery under my command, composed of 
one hundred and ten men, and seven officers, with a battery 
of six pieces of artillery, were, on the morning of the battle, 
directed to form under the direction of Captain Weightman, 
between the two columns of merchants' and provision wag- 
ons, being thus masked from the view of the enemy. 

In this column my troops continued the march to within 
fifteen hundred yards of the enemy's most advanced posi- 
tion ; our direction was then changed to the right, and the 
column having crossed the Arroyo Seco, without reach of the 
enemy's fire, rapidly advanced towards the table land be- 
tween the Seco and Sacramento. At this time the enemy 
was perceived advancing from his entrenchments, to prevent 
our seizing upon the heights ; but by a rapid movement of 
the battery it was quickly drawn from its mask, and seizing 
upon a favorable position, protected in the rear by a mask, 
from the attack of a large body of the enemy's cavalry ascer- 
tained to be hanging on our rear, it was formed and at once 
opened fire upon the enemy's cavalry rapidly advancing 
upon us. 

At this time his charging columns were about nine hun- 
ts o 

dred yards distant, and the effect of our grape shot and 
shells was such as to break his ranks, and throw his cavalry 
into confusion. The enemy now rapidly deployed into line, 
bringing up his artillery from the entrenchments. During 
this time our line was preparing for a charge — my artillery 
advancing by hand and firing. The enemy now opened a 
heavy fire of cannon upon our line, mainly directed upon 
the battery, but with little effect. Lieutenant Dorn had his 
horse shot under him by. a nine-pound ball, at this stage of 
the action, and several mules and oxen in the merchant w^a- 
gons, in our rear, were wounded or killed, which, however, 
was the only damage done. The fire of our cannon at this 
time had such good effect as to dismount one of the enemy's 



554 APPENDIX. 

pieces, and completely to disperse his cavalry and drive him 
from his position, forcing him to again retire behind his en- 
trenchments. 

For a short time, the firing on either side now ceased, 
and the enemy appeared to be removing his cannon and 
wounded, whilst our line prepared to change position, and 
move towards the right, for the purpose of occupying a more 
advantageous ground. Our object being soon gained, the order 
to advance was given, and immediately after I was directed 
to send the section of howitzers to support a charge upon the 
enemy's left. I immediately ordered Captain R. H. Weight- 
man to detach the section composed of two twelve-pound 
mountain howitzers, mounted upon carriages constructed es- 
pecially for field prairie service, and drawn by two horses 
each. These were commanded by Lieutenants E. F. Chou- 
teau and H. D. Evans, and manned by some tw^enty men, 
whose conduct in this action cannot be too much commended. 

Captain Weightman charged at full gallop upon the ene- 
my's left, preceded by Captain Reid and his company of 
horse, and after crossing a ravine some hundred and fifty 
yards from the enemy, he unlimbered the guns within fifty 
yards of the entrenchment and opened a destructive fire of 
canister into his ranks, which was warmly returned, but with- 
out effect. Captain Weightman again advanced upon the 
entrenchments, passing through it in the face of the enemy, 
and within a few feet of the ditches, and in the midst of 
cross fires from three directions, again opened his fire to 
the right and left with such effect, that, with a formidable 
charge of the cavalry and dismounted men of your own regi- 
ment and Lieutenant-Colonel Mitchell's escort, the enemy 
were driven from the breast-works on our right in great con- 
fusion. 

At this time under a heavy cross fire from the battery of 
four six-pounders, under lieutenants Dorn, Kribben, and 
Labaume, upon the enemy's right, supported by Major Gilpin 
on the left, and the wagon train, escorted by two companies 



APPENDIX. 555 

of infantry under captains E. F. Glasgow and Skillman in 
the rear, Major Gilpin charged upon the enemy's centre and 
forced him from his entrenchments under a heavy fire of ar- 
tillery and small arms. At the same time the fire of our own 
batteries was opened upon the enemy's extreme right, from 
which a continued fire had been kept up upon our line and 
the wagon train. Two of the enemy's guns were now soon 
dismounted on their right, that battery silenced, and the enemy 
dislodged from the redoubt on the Cerrd Frijoles. 

Perceiving a body of lancers forming for the purpose of 
outflanking our left and attacking the merchant train under 
Captain Glasgow, I again opened upon them a very destruc- 
tive fire of grape and spherical case shot, which soon cleared 
the left of our line. The enemy, vacating his entrench- 
ments and deserting his guns, was hotly pursued towards 
the mountains beyond Cerro Frijoles, and down Arroyo 
Seco la Sacramento, by both wings of the army under Lieu- 
tenant-Colonel Mitchell, Lieutenant-Colonel Jackson, and 
Major Gilpin, and by Captain Weightman, with the section 
of howitzers. During this pursuit my officers repeatedly 
opened their fires upon the retreating enemy with great 
effect. 

To cover this flight of the enemy's forces from the en- 
trenched camp, the heaviest of his cannon had been taken 
from the entrenchments to Cerro Sacramento, and a heavy 
fire opened upon our pursuing forces and the wagons follow- 
ing in the rear. To silence this battery, I had the honor to 
anticipate your order to that eflfect by at once occupying the 
nearest of the enemy's entrenchments, 1,225 yards distant, 
and, notwithstanding the elevated position of the Mexican 
battery, giving him a plunging fire into my entrenchment, 
which was not defiled, and the greater range of his long 
nine-pounders, the first fire of our guns dismounted one of 
his largest pieces, and the fire was kept up with such brisk- 
ness and precision of aim that the battery was soon silenced 
and the enemy seen precipitately retreating. 



556 APPENDIX. 

The fire was then continned upon the rancho Sacrajmento, 
and the enemy's ammunition and wagon-train, retreating upon 
the road to Chihuahua. By their fire the house and several 
wagons were rendered untenable and useless. By this time 
Lieutenant-Colonel Mitchell had scaled the hill, followed by 
the section of howitzers under Captain Weightman, and the 
last position of the Mexican forces was taken possession of 
by our troops, thus leaving the American forces masters of 
the field. Having silenced the fire from Cerro Sacramento, 
one battery was removed into the plain at the rancho, where 
we gained the road, and were in pursuit of the enemy, when 
I received your order to return and encamp within the ene- 
my's entrenchments for the night. 

From the time of first opening my fire upon the Mexican 
cavalry, to the cessation of the firing upon the rancho and 
battery of Sacramento, was about three hours ; and during 
the whole time of the action, I take the utmost pleasure in 
stating that every ofl[icer and man of my command did his 
duty with cheerfulness, coolness, and precision, which is 
suflSciently shown by the admirable effect produced by 
their fire, the great accuracy of their aim, their expedition 
and ingenuity in supplying deficiencies in the field during 
action, and the prompt management of their pieces — ren- 
dered still more remarkable from the fact that I had, during 
the fight, less than two-thirds the number of cannoniers gen- 
erally required for the service of light artillery, and but four 
of the twelve artillery carriages belonging to my battery were 
harnessed to horses, the remaining eight carriages being har- 
nessed to mules of the country. 

During the day my staff were of the greatest service — 
Adjutant Leo. D. Walker having been sent with the howitzers, 
and the non-commissioned officers remaining with me to as- 
sist in the service of the battery. In this action the troops 
under your command have captured one nine-pounder moun- 
ted on a cheek-trail carriage, one nine-pounder, one six- 
pounder, and seven four-pounder guns, all mounted on new 



APPENDIX. 557 

stock-trail carriages. These pieces were manufactured in 
Chihuahua, except the six-pounder, which is an old Spanish 
piece. Three of the four-pounders were made at the mint in 
Chihuahua. Seven of the ten pieces were spiked, but have 
been unspiked since their capture ; four of these were ren- 
dered unserviceable in the action; one, entirely dismounted, 
was seized by my adjutant whilst in the act of being dragged 
from the field by the retreating enemy. There were also 
taken two pieces of artillery mounting three wall pieces of 
one and a half inch calibre each, and these are formidable 
weapons upon a charging force. With these twelve pieces 
of artillery was taken a due proportion of ammunition, imple- 
ments, harness, mules, &c., and they may be rendered ser- 
viceable by being properly repaired and manned. 

It is with feelings of gratitude to the Ruler of all battles, 
that I have now the honor to report that not a man of my 
command has been hurt, nor any animals, with the exception 
of one horse killed under Lieutenant Dorn, chief of the first 
section of six-pound guns, and one mule, belonging to the 
United States, shot under one of the cannoniers, neither has 
a gun or other carriage of my battery been touched, except 
in one instance, when a nine-pound ball struck the tire of a 
wheel, without producing injury. This is a fact worthy of 
notice, that so little damage was done to a command so 
greatly exposed to the enemy's fire, and, of itself, made a 
point of attack by the enemy, if I may so judge by the 
showers of cannon and other shot constantly poured into us, 
as long as the enemy continued to occupy his position. 

I might call your attention to the individual instances of 
personal courage and good conduct of the men of my com- 
mand, as well as of the intrepid bravery, cool and deter- 
mined courage of many of your own regiment, and Lieuten- 
ant-Colonel Mitchell's escort, who charged with us upon the 
enemy's works, were it not impossible, in any reasonable 
space, to name so many equally worthy of distinction ; and 
did I not presume that other field-officers, on that occasion, 



558 APPENDIX. 

would report the proceedings of their own commands, and 
the praiseworthy conduct of their own officers and men. 

With high respect, I am, sir, your most obedient servant, 

M. LEWIS CLARK, 
Major Commanding Battalion Mo. Light Artillery. 



XXIII. 

[translation.] 

Summons of Santa Anna to General Taylor. 
You are surrounded by twenty thousand men, and can- 
not, in any human probability, avoid suffering a rout, and 
being cut to pieces with your troops ; but as you deserve 
consideration and particular esteem, I wish to save you from 
such a catastrophe, and for that purpose give you this notice, 
in order that you may surrender at discretion, under the 
assurance that you will be treated with the consideration be- 
longing to the Mexican character, to which end you will be 
granted an hour's time to make up your mind, to commence 
from the moment when my flag of truce arrives in your camp. 
With this view, I assure you of my particular consideration. 
God and Liberty. 

ANTONIO LOPEZ DE SANTA ANNA. 

Camp at Encantada, February 22, 1847. 
To Gen. Z. Taylor, commanding the forces of the U. S. 

Head-quarters, Army of Occupation, ) 

Near Buena Vista, February 22, 1847. ^ 

Sir : In reply to your note of this date, summoning me 
to surrender my forces at discretion, I beg leave to say that 
I decline acceding to your request. 

With high respect, I am, sir, your obedient serv't, 

Z. TAYLOR. 
Major General U. S. Army commanding. 
Senor General D. Antonio Lopez de Santa Anna, 

Commander-in-Chief La Encantada. 



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APPENDIX. 661 



XXV. 

Head-quarters of the army of the U. S. of America, ) 
Camp Washington, before Vera Cruz, March 22,1847. \ 

The undersigned, Major General Scott, General-in-chief 
of the armies of the United States of America, in addition to 
the close blockade of the coast and port of Vera Cruz, pre- 
viously established by the squadron under Commodore Con- 
ner, of the navy of the said states, having now fully invested 
the said city with an overwhelming army, so as to render it 
impossible that its garrison should receive from without suc- 
cor or reinforcement of any kind : and having caused to be 
established batteries, competent to the speedy reduction of 
the city, he, the undersigned, deems it due to the courtesies 
of war in like cases, as well as the rights of humanity, to 
summon his excellency, the governor and commander-in- 
chief of the city of Vera Cruz to surrender the same to the 
arms of the United States of America, present before the 
place. 

The undersigned, anxious to spare the beautiful city of 
Vera Cruz from the imminent hazard of demolition — its gal- 
lant defenders from a useless effusion of blood, and its 
peaceful inhabitants — women and children inclusive — from 
the inevitable horrors of a triumphant assault, addresses this 
summons to the intelligence, the gallantry, and patriotism, no 
less than to the humanity of his excellency the governor and 
commander-in-chief of Vera Cruz. 

The undersigned is not accurately informed whether both 
the city of Vera Cruz and the castle of San Juan d'Ulloa be 
under the command of his excellency, or whether each place 
has its own independent commander ; but the undersigned, 
moved by the considerations adverted to above, may be wil- 
ling to stipulate that, if the city should by capitulation be 
garrisoned by a part of his troops, no missile shall be fired 
36 



562 APPENDIX. 

from within the city, or from its bastions or walls, upon the 
castle, unless the castle should previously fire upon the city. 
The undersigned has the honor to tender to his distin- 
guished opponent, his excellency, the governor and comman- 
der-in-chief of Vera Cruz, the assurance of the high respect 
and consideration of the undersigned. 

WINFIELD SCOTT. 



TRANSLATION. 

The undersigned. Commanding General of the free and 
sovereign state of Vera Cruz, has informed himself of the 
contents of the note which Major General Scott, general-in- 
chief of the forces of the United States, has addressed to 
him under date of to-day, demanding the surrender of this 
place and the castle of Ulloa ; and, in answer, has to say, 
that the above-named fortress, as well as this place, depend 
on his authority ; and it being his principal duty, in order to 
prove worthy of the confidence placed in him by the govern- 
ment of the nation, to defend both points at all cost, to effect 
which he counts upon the necessary elements, and will make 
it good to the last : therefore his excellency can commence 
his operations of war in the manner which he may consider 
most advantageous. 

The undersigned has the honor to return to the General- 
in-chief of the forces of the United States the demonstrations 
of esteem he may be pleased to honor him with. 
God and Liberty ! 

JUAN MORALES. 

Vera Cruz, March 23, 1847. 
To Major General Scott, general-in-chief of the forces of 
the United States, situated in sight of this place. 



APPENDIX. 563 



XXVI. 

Articles of Capitulation of the City of Vera Cruz 
AND THE Castle of San Juan D'Ulloa. 

PuENTE DK HoRNOS, without the walls of Vera Cruz, ) 
Saturday, March 27, 1847. ] 

Terms of capitulation agreed upon by the Commissioners, 
viz: 

Generals W. J. Worth and G. J. PiUow, and ColonelJ. G. Tot- 
ten, chief engineer on the part of Major General Scott, general-in- 
chief of the armies of the United States ; and Colonel Jose Gutier- 
rez de Villanueva, lieutenant-colonel of engineers, Manuel Robles, 
and Colonel Pedro de Herrera, commissioners appointed by general 
of brigade Don Jose Juan Landero, commanding in chief Vera 
Cruz, the castle of San Juan d'UUoa, and their dependencies, for the 
surrender to the arms of the United States of the said forts, with 
their armaments, munitions of war, garrisons, and arms. 

1. The whole garrison or garrisons to be surrendered to the arms 
of the United States, as prisoners of war, the 29th instant at 10 
o'clock, A. M.; the garrisons to be permitted to march out with all 
the honors of war, and to lay down their arms to such officers as 
may be appointed by the general-in-chief of the United States ar- 
mies, and at a point to be agreed upon by the commissioners. 

2. Mexican officers shall preserve their arms and private effects, 
including horses and horse furniture, and to be allowed, regular and 
irregular officers, as also the rank and file, five days to retire to their 
respective homes on parole, as hereinafter prescribed. 

3. Coincident with the surrender, as stipulated in article 1st, the 
Mexican flags of the various forts and stations, shall be struck, salut- 
ed by their own batteries ; and immediately thereafter forts San- 
tiago and Conception and the castle of San Juan d'UUoa occupied by 
the forces of the United States. 

4. The rank and file of the regular portion of the prisoners to 
be disposed of, after surrender and parole, as their general-in-chief 
may desire, and the irregular to be permitted to return to their 
homes ; the officers, in regard to all arms and descriptions of force, 



564 APPENDIX. 

giving the usual parole that the said rank and file, as well as them- 
selves, shall not serve again until duly exchanged. 

5. All the materiel of war, and all public property of every 
description found in the city, the castle of San Juan d'UUoa, and 
their dependencies, to belong to the United States ; but the arma- 
ment of the same (not injured or destroyed in the further prosecu- 
tion of the actual war) may be considered as liable to be restored to 
Mexico by a definitive treaty of peace. 

6. The sick and wounded Mexicans to be allowed to remain in 
the city, with such medical officers and attendants and officers of 
the army as may be necessary to their care and treatment. 

7. Absolute protection is solemnly guarantied to persons in the 
city, and property; and it is clearly understood that no private 
building or property is to be taken or used by the forces of the 
United States without previous arrangement with the owners, and 
for a fair equivalent. 

8. Absolute freedom of religious worship and ceremonies is so- 
lemnly guarantied. 

(Signed in duplicate.) 

W. J. WORTH, Brigadier-General, 
GID. J. PILLOW, Brigadier-General, 
JOS. G. TOTTEN, Colonel and Chief Engineer, 
JOSE GUTIERREZ DE VILLANUEVA, 
PEDRO MANUEL HERRERA, 
MANUEL ROBLES. 
Captain Aulick — appointed a commissioner by Commodore Perry 
on behalf of the navy, (the general-in-chief not being able, in con- 
sequence of the roughness of the sea, to communicate Avith the navy 
imtil after commissions had been exchanged,) and being present by 
General Scott's invitation, and concurring in the result and approving 
thereof — ^hereto affixes his name and signature. 

J. H. AULICK, Captain U. S. Navy. 

Head-quarters of the Army of U. S. of America, ) 
Camp JVashingion, before Vera Cruz, March 27, 1847. ) 

Approved and accepted. WINFIELD SCOTT. 

M. C. PERRY, 
Commander-in-chief U. S. navaU'orce&MuIf of Mexico. 
Vera Cruz, Marzo 27, 1817. 1 /| J / <^ 

Approbad y acceptado. jQgg j^^p^ ^^ LANDERO. 

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